Top 10/ Strokes / Grant Surprise / Fundraising Tips - 2/25/10

Thu Feb 25 13:45:54 EST 2010

- SWEEPSTAKES COMPLAINT
- YOUR TANGO RECOMMENDS TOP TEN FOR MARRIAGE ADVICE
- HAPPY MARRIAGE CUTS MEN'S RISK FOR STROKE
- SURPRISE ANNOUNCEMENT OF A GRANT TO 4 SELECT CITIES
- FUNDRAISING TIPS

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- SWEEPSTAKES COMPLAINT

> Diane, 
> I think it's unfair to limit the registration sweepstakes to online
> registrants.  We are registering two groups by mail and that's ten of us who
> are shut out of the drawing.
> Margaret W.

First, for those of you who don't know what Margaret is protesting, everyone
who registers ONLINE by April 1st for the Smart Marriages Conference will
automatically be entered into a sweepstakes to win three different
conference recording packages - whole conference audio; whole keynote video
package; and *the works* - both the audio and video sets.

We're doing this because ONLINE registrations are much more efficient and
accurate AND because we need as many early registrations as possible so that
we can make accurate breakout room /AV equipment assignments. (You know how
miserable you are if we get this wrong and the room is overflowing or a
session closes because we didn't know to put it a larger room.) More on the
sweepstakes here: http://tinyurl.com/ygy33z3

SECOND, you CAN register a group online.  There is no reason that you have
to register a group by mail UNLESS you can't pay by credit card.  Each
member of a group can go online and register and use their own credit card
or a company or agency credit card.  The 5th person takes the group/free
registration.  Students can also register online.  The details are spelled
out here: 
https://www.academeca.com/SMART2010/Reg.aspx

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- YOUR TANGO RECOMMENDS TOP TEN FOR MARRIAGE ADVICE

@YourTango Twitter Top 10: Who To Follow For Marriage Advice includes
Divorce Busting, Gary Chapman, and SmartMarriages

http://tinyurl.com/yfbsags

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- HAPPY MARRIAGE CUTS MEN'S RISK FOR STROKE

Ah, yes. Stroking prevents strokes......  Diane

Happy Marriage Cuts Men's Risk for Stroke
Single men, unhappy husbands had higher incidence of dying in study.
By Ed Edelson
HealthDay Reporter 

WEDNESDAY, Feb. 24 (HealthDay News) -- Single or unhappily married men seem
to run a greater risk of dying from a stroke than those with good marriages,
a new Israeli study indicates.

The study, which tracked more than 10,000 civil servants and municipal
workers from 1963 to 1997, found that 8.4 percent of the single men died of
strokes, compared to 7.1 percent of the married men. When age and known
stroke risk factors such as obesity, smoking and diabetes were included in
the analysis, single men had a 64 percent higher risk of fatal stroke than
married men, according to a report scheduled to be presented Wednesday at
the American Stroke Association's annual stroke conference in San Antonio.

The study also asked men to evaluate the success of their marriages. The 3.6
percent of men who reported dissatisfaction with marriage also had a 64
percent higher risk of a fatal stroke, compared to those who considered
their marriages to be very successful.

"Maybe summoning help in the case of suspected stroke took longer among
those who were unmarried," said study author Uri Goldbourt, a professor of
epidemiology and preventive medicine at Tel Aviv University. "If that were
true, perhaps the probability to survive a stroke would be lower among those
living alone."

Goldbourt said he had no explanation for the effect of happiness on stroke
mortality. "I had not expected that unsuccessful marriage would be of this
statistical importance," he said.

But it's clear that a long, happy relationship is associated with a higher
likelihood of taking the recommended measures against the known stroke risk
factors, said Daniel Lackland, director of graduate training at the Medical
University of South Carolina, and a spokesman for the American Stroke
Association.

"When you look at diabetes, one of the major stresses, and at therapeutic
responses to hypertension, if you look at something like cigarette smoking,
there is better support in quitting," Lackland said. "Weight loss is so much
better when two people are involved."

A good marriage means "having the support that makes you more compliant with
therapy," he said. "Also, you are more likely to go see a physician if you
are not feeling well."

The study included a rather special group of men, Goldbourt noted. "I doubt
greatly that it is something special about Israel that creates the reported
relationship," he said. "If anything, the correct question could be: is
there something about a migrant population that would create such a
relationship?"

Most of the men (86 percent) were immigrants, some of whom arrived before
the state of Israel was created, Goldbourt said. "A not inconsiderable
proportion of these men had migrated from states of personal persecution and
economic hardships," he said. "I don't know whether that would have
something to do with the finding."

Goldbourt said he does not know of a similar study of women. "Certainly,
such a study would be of great interest," he said.

"There are some suggestions that it is the same for women," Lackland said.
"If you are in a good relationship, it goes both ways. Social support is
better in a good relationship."

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- SURPRISE ANNOUNCEMENT OF A GRANT TO 4 SELECT CITIES

The Marriage and Family Foundation/Marriage CoMission/Chick-fil-A just let 4
cities know that they're going to receive $100,000 to strengthen marriages
in their communities.  The four city initiatives are Amarillo, TX (High
Plains Coalition), Columbus, GA (Right from the Start), Northwest Arkansas
(NWA Healthy Marriages), and Richmond, VA (First Things First of Greater
Richmond!!  

> Huge news for the four focus cities! Some donors stepped up and through the
> Marriage & Family Foundation the four cities each received $100,000. As a
> creative way to announce the grant, the MFF purchased Kodak Pocket Video
> Cameras and loaded the announcement onto the cameras and mailed them to the
> cities. You can watch the video here:
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCtj6lNUFFs.
> 
> The cities are working on a spending plan that will provide measurement for
> results of the gift. We'll keep you updated on the news of how the cities will
> be using the funds!

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- FUNDRAISING TIPS

In the same announcement the Marriage Comission shared pointers on
fund-raising, a burning issue for most of us which is reflected by the
popularity of the fund-raising sessions are at the Smart Marriages
Conference, like this one where we have two top-of-the-line experts:

> 914 One Day - Monday, July 12 - NO CE
> Fundraising & Marketing 2.0
> Julie Baumgardner, MS, CFLE, Marshall Howard, JD
> Exciting strategies for sustaining your marriage strengthening efforts into
> the future - with or without grants. Who, when, and how to ask and creative,
> cost-effective messages to transform your community. $50 spouse discount.
> Click for more information: http://www.smartmarriages.com/FTF.fundraising.html

TIPS:  

The following are excerpts from the Generosity Field Guide being prepared
to increase the effectiveness of your fund raising efforts. Donor research
conducted in late 2009 revealed that there are four donor personas in the
Marriage and Family Movement. They are not mutually exclusive but rather
tendencies in attitudes and beliefs. Stay tuned for information on accessing
the full Generosity Field Guide.

True Believer
This individual will most likely:
Ask about religious or legislative initiatives, and be very interested in
what is happening on the local, state, or national political scene.

You might consider:
·         Tell stories of how the organization has helped their own family
or the family of someone they know

Caring Seeker
This individual will most likely:
Express discouragement about where the country or community is headed,
particularly as it relates to traditional family values.

You might consider:
Relate what the organization is doing that matches their own beliefs and
values.

Duty Bound
This individual will most likely:
Talk about the enormity of the challenge of fixing marriages and families.

You might consider
·         Focusing on your success stories of saving marriages for
children....one at a time

Half-Full
This individual will most likely:
Talk about the difficulty of marriage, or how the odds are against most
couples, or how most couples go into marriage assuming it won't last.

You might consider:
·         "Indeed it is a big problem." Tell stories of the effectiveness of
collaboration between local and national organizations

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14th Annual Smart Marriages® Conference, The Shingle Creek Resort Hotel,
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Pre-Conference Training Institutes July 6-8
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Up to 70 Hrs CE

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