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Tie-Dye for a Cause

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Rick was standing in the kitchen of the office with his hands dripping of red dye looking like he belonged in a horror movie. Selene’s hands were green: alien green. And I was wondering how we had managed to get ourselves into this mess to begin with. It’s press day as I’m writing this, but my publisher was tie-dying the Expo/Fundraiser shirts which will be for sale May 12 & 13 in Tacoma, WA.

Dive and Travel Expo is partnering with Oregon-based Dive for a Cure to raise money and awareness for the fight against Breast Cancer.  Since 2008, Dive for a Cure, originally facilitated by Eugene Skin Divers of Eugene, OR, has raised over $100,000 in the struggle against breast cancer. Donations acquired through Dive for a Cure go to the Oregon Health Sciences University, a tax-deductible non-profit IRS 501(C) (3) organization. In addition, the  proceeds raised through donations at the 2012 Dive & Travel Expo will go to Dive for a Cure.

These shirts would not be possible without the amazing work of artist Rogest who designed the back of the shirt with the Galapagos Blue-Footed Boobie Bird.

This bird is endangered, but we couldn’t put a picture of the real type of boobie we were saving, so we opted for a pun. Rogest not only obliged but did a phenomenal job!
But why tie-dye over such a great piece of art? Like all great printing goof-ups, there was a miscommunication. I heard Rick say into the phone “Bright Pink Shirts”, but what we received was “Light Pink Shirts”.

Like the kind of light pink you might find at a baby shower for your coworker’s wife. The kind of light pink that would make a man turn pink if he was asked to wear it. Ultimately, the kind of light pink that wouldn’t help us raise money for a worthy cause.

Ideas were tossed around the room, and reprint was the only thing we could think of. None of us wanted to pursue that particular option, because we knew it would mean less money for the cause. And we all know those precious boobies need as much money as they can get!

Eventually, someone said tie-dye. It was a joke at first. What kind of idiot would want to tie-dye 400 shirts in the middle of prepping for an Expo? Apparently, we latched onto the idea, and now we are the idiots rolling and dying shirts like maniacs.

The last three weeks of March the office kitchen was turned into a dying station. Rick’s hands were definitely slaughter-house worthy. Selene had to repaint her green stained nails. We even have a name for a few of the shirts rolled by Selene’s son Reagan. (Ask for the Reagan Roll when you buy your shirt!) The effort was worth it in the end.

After seeing the end result, we changed the donation level to $30 to get a shirt - up from the original $20 amount. By requesting just ten extra dollars from each person we estimate we will potentially be donating $10,000-$12,000! Those math whizzes out there already see it is $4,000 more than the original projected $6,000-$8,000. These shirts are truly amazing, and I feel lucky to work with such a generous and dedicated group of people who have made it their mission to raise money for a worthy cause like Dive for a Cure.

One question remains though, how am I supposed to get this magazine to press when the kitchen and staff looks like a clown murder scene?

Get more information about the Dive & Travel Expo by visiting www.diveandtravelexpo.com
Get more information about Dive for a Cure at www.diveforacure.org