What is The Bucket Fund?
Inspired by the life of our dear friend, Steven “Coach Mac” McAnelly, The Bucket Fund was created to fulfill the travel dreams of public servants with life-limiting illnesses and limited resources. Public servants touch our lives frequently and profoundly. First responders, nurses and hospital workers strive to protect and preserve our lives and health, military personnel fight for our freedom and way of life, volunteers give selflessly to causes that enrich our lives, and teachers and coaches inspire us to greatness, like Coach Mac did for over 30 years. However, a life of service sometimes affords little time and resources for chasing the travel and adventure dreams of youth. This is where Old Soles Travel, through the generous donations from you and likeminded individuals and organizations, can help make these dreams a reality for a select few deserving individuals. The funding for Coach Mac’s dream vacation to Rome and Pompeii is being raised (Donate Here) and the trip is booked for September of 2021. Coach’s Family, friends, and some complete strangers donated enough for a spectacular trip in less than one month, allowing for Coach to realize a lifelong dream that did not seem plausible when he was diagnosed with Stage 4 cancer. He is excited for the adventure and grateful for the opportunity, as are we to see his excitement and be part of such a worthwhile project. Our short-term goal is to help one to three individuals per year realize their goal to reach their dream destination while they are healthy enough to enjoy it. Fundraising for each upcoming bucket list adventure will be sought based on the individual’s story and dream vacation. Through your giving, we hope that adequate funds can be raised through these efforts each time, but we are setting up The Bucket F.U.N.D. to ensure that any shortcomings can be covered without the need to use the limited resources of the chosen public servant which would be better allocated towards their quality of life during their battle with whichever condition is limiting its duration. With continued success towards helping more people realize their dreams, our hope is to officially begin a non-profit 501(c)(3) by 2022 which will exponentially increase our ability to serve more public servants in similar situations. Thank you for your consideration and support. All funds donated will be set aside for funding the non-profit and future bucket list adventures and the stories of these will be shared on oldsolestravel.com and Old Soles Travel’s social media outlets so you can enjoy the experiences you are supporting. The $10,500 requested (Donate here) will pay for website development, 501(c)3 incorporation, and funding for the first trip which is planned for early 2022. Currently, the candidates are being selected through our personal network which includes a large number of public servants and volunteers due to our current roles as volunteer coordinators. Future efforts to expand this reach will include nominations through our website, but this will have to wait until after we are incorporated as a 501(c)(3). |
Above: Coach Mac loves teaching at the McLarty Museum
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We encourage you to make a bucket list of places and adventures that you would like to do, no matter what stage of life you are in. There is a sense of optomism in dreaming and an immense satisfaction that comes from fulfilling your dreams. Our site is here to inspire and help you make your travel dreams more inspired, more sustainable, more attainable, and more often. Please feel free to share your dreams with others in the comments below and follow our social media (links below) for more on our travels and the upcoming launch of The Bucket Fund.
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