Mandalorian Mercs - Verd'ika Fund

Little Warrior Fund

Verd'ika Fund
06/25/11

Back in November of 2007, an idea was born. The Mandalorian Mercs was a striving community for Mandalorian cosutming and we were getting a good amount of members and traffic to the site. We wanted to use this popularity to give back to the community in some way. The idea was that it was our duty as costumers to be able to help the most important fans who love Star Wars^TM...the children.

The council of Mercs put our heads together and came up with the best idea we could. We already worked in conjunction with other costume clubs like The 501st Legion and The Rebel Legion who both do many charity events. We wanted to do something that would set us a little bit apart from these other two great costume clubs. So in November, we decided that we would sponcer our own charity..."Help a Verd'ika Fund".

The the main goal of the fund is to provide toys for underprivalaged children throughout the regions of the Mandalorian Mercs Costume Club. Our focus is on giving out Star Wars^TM toys as well as books, clothing, and gift cards. The name of the fund is derived from the Mandalorian term "Verd'ika" which means "Little Warrior".

PARDON THE MESS BELOW AS WE UPDATE THIS PAGE TO BRING YOU RECAPS OF WHAT WE'VE DONE IN THE PREVIOUS YEARS

2007	2007 was the first year we conducted this fund, and we ran it for just one month to see exactly how well it would be recieved by our own membership. Our goal: $150 to help two small children in Ohio through the "Caring and Sharing" program in Central Ohio. We surpassed our goal and raised almost $200 just from club membership alone! We considered this a victory and decided that we would put our fund to the test of the public and collect througout the year.

2008	Our goal for 2008 was to surpass 2007's amount of $200. Considering how much area our club covers, and the amount of visitors we recieve daily, this was going to be an easy goal for us to attain. Throughout the year we raised over $750 that we used to help a family in North Carolina whos house had burned down only months before Christmas. We were able to purchase toys and a few gift cards for new clothes for the children and family.

2009	2009's goal was again to surpass the amount collected from the previous year. We wanted to help the donations along with a bit of a challenge in 2009. One of our members, Tahl Taab, donated a wonderful hand-crafted keepsake box that he had decorated with Mandalorian sigils. We offered a chance to win the box to anyone who could donate $20 to the fund. In November, a winning name was drawn at random and the winner was awarded his prize. We raised over $1000 in 2009. The additional donations over $1000 were rolled over to help start 2010's donations. Two clans were picked and $500 each were sent to the clan leaders to use in a local gift-giving way. Naast Clan used their portion to purchase toys for the "Toys for Tots" program down in GA. Falco Clan donated their portion of the fund to the local chapter of "A Room To Heal" in NY.

2010	Just like previous years, our goal of 2010 was to surpass the amount raised from the previous year. Again, we succeeded by raising $2500. This year saw more clans holding "Bounty Hunts" at conventions where people would donate in order to see their friends and family "captured" by the Mercs and "placed in jail". The fund was split to 4 clans who requested to use their share for various charitable purposes. The clans involved each took their donation amount and then reported back on what it was used for. Vhetin'ade Clan donated their portion to the "Children's Wish" program that helped a special little boy with a serious heart condition in Winnepeg, Canada get his wish of going to Disney World. Wampa Clan donated their portion to two local Maine families in need. The first family has a child suffering from bone cancer, the second has a child with kidney failure. Both are receiving on-going medical treatments and the money helped to cover some of the costs of the medical bills. Suumpir'ade Clan teamed up with the 501st Great Lakes Garrison and Reble Legion Great Lakes Base and donated their portion to the Michigan Special Olympics. The donated amount was added to the amount they helped raise at a local hockey event. Finally, a portion of the fun was sent to the "Hope for the Eliason Family" fundraiser, which was to help the Eliason Family of UT whose house had burnt down only a week from Christmas leaving the family of 5 homeless and with no belongings or anything for Christmas. The donation was added to many others that got the family back on their feet to enjoy Christmas that year.