Help a Coastie, Support the Coast Guard – Code Name: I’m for 1790

Posted on 19 December 2009 by Rachel Polish | Comments

I'm running in support of Coast Guard Mutual Assistance

This time of year, we often think of those in need, those less fortunate and those we love.  Food banks swell with volunteers, kettles outside of department stores are fed with our loose change and people seek to help causes they might not have considered supporting throughout the year.  Have you ever looked at the person next to you, your shipmate, as someone who may need some financial peace of mind?  This year, with the economy having an impact on many of us, many Coasties are feeling the impact, too.  Whether financial deficiencies occur because of expenses associated with a natural disaster, because of family struggles or because of a change in one’s career, it’s not often that we look to the people who work by our side every day as those who many need a helping hand.

The Coast Guard Mutual Assistance fund serves this purpose, providing Coasties with short-term grants, loans or education assistance during times of personal need, including during Hurricane Katrina when many guardians lost their own homes and personal belongings.  Here are some of the areas where Coast Guard Mutual Assistance provides assistance:

Every holiday season, I look at my amazing life, my supportive family and friends and my incredible luck in having the best of both civilian and military careers.  No matter how tight my own finances are, I know that there are others who are less fortunate and in much greater need of a helping hand.  This year, I’ve chosen to focus my attention on the organization that has given me so much – the Coast Guard – and to those who make us the strong team we are.  My goal is to raise $1790, in honor of the year the Coast Guard was founded.  By donating here, you will be helping our fellow shipmates with confidential assistance that they might not have received otherwise. By using the code in the memo section “I’m for 1790,” we can track our progress and work to support one another.  If you use Twitter, please share your support with others by using the hashtag #Im41790.”

At the finish line of the San Francisco Half Marathon with the Coast Guard behind me all of the way

We’re all “for 1790” – our Coast Guard.  Please know that every donation will allow CGMA to do more to help our fellow shipmates.

Disclosure:  I initiated this campaign on my own, as I decided I wanted to do more than just donate online to such an important cause.  No one asked me to create this campaign and the Coast Guard does not have any involvement.  Please join me in supporting “I’m for 1790.”