JDRF One Walk Houston Important Day of Details
Saturday, November 3, 2018

Please read the following thoroughly before Walk day to ensure an easy arrival at NRG Park. For questions or more information please contact the Houston Gulf Coast Chapter at houston@jdrf.org.

Before the Walk 

• We HIGHLY encourage all Walkers to pre-register online at walk.jdrf.org/houston. Not only does this make check-in go more smoothly, it allows you to get to the fun and not wait in line.
• Turning in funds earlier is another great way to ensure a speedy check-in process on Walk Day. You can mail in gifts to the JDRF Houston office before and after the Walk to Attn: JDRF Walk, 1776 Yorktown, Suite 560, Houston, TX 77396. Be sure to read the enclosed Walk Donation Tips Sheet below.

Walk Day Schedule

• 8:00 a.m. Check-In Opens and Entertainment Begins
• 9:00 a.m. Opening Ceremony sponsored by Sequent Energy Management
• 9:30 a.m. Walk Starts
• 10:30 a.m-Light Refreshments Served and Entertainment continues

When You Arrive 
All teams and individual walkers are to proceed to the Walk Central Tent upon arrival. Check out the site map for location of all the tents!

• V1P Check-In: If you have personally raised more than $1,000, you are a V1P and there will be a designated checkin line just for you!
• General Check-In: If you have pre-registered online and have gifts to turn in, donations should be counted and sealed in a completed Walker Collection Envelope. Please be sure to clearly write an accurate total of money contained in the envelope on the front of the envelope. Every walker turning in funds should turn in their own separate envelope—this helps us make sure the proper walker is credited. Walker Collection Envelopes will be available in the check-in tent.
• Unregistered Walkers: If you or a member of your team is not registered online, please complete a Walker Collection Envelope at check-in.
• T-Shirt Tickets: Did you personally raise $100 or more for JDRF? Be sure to get a t-shirt ticket at check-in and proceed to the t-shirt tent.

Food and Refreshments
While we provide as many refreshments as possible, please understand that we have a limited quantity of food and beverage available and we are not able to meet all dietary needs. In order for you to fully enjoy the activities of the day, we ask that you please come prepared with your own snacks for low blood sugar treatment.

Walk Route 
Our Walk Route will extend through NRG Park and we will be offering a shorter Family Friendly route option as well. Please see the route map for details and remember to follow the JDRF signs. Volunteers will also be in place to help you navigate.

Entertainment and Activities

• Resource Row sponsored by Houston Methodist JC Walter Transplant Center will be open before and after the Walk. Be sure to stop by the vendor tables and get important information about diabetes management from Houston Methodist, TrialNet, Omnipod/Insulet, Tandem and the Texas A&M Diabetic Echoes!
• The Kids Zone will be up and running in the morning with activities such as face painting, carnival games, rock climbing, gaming truck, a petty zoo, bounce houses, and so much more.  Be sure to post pics using your favorite social media site using #JDRFOneWalk #JDRFHouston.
• We have added a new section this year for our young adults.  Be sure to stop by the Young Adult Village sponsored by Baylor College of Medicine Young Adults Diabetes Clinic.  Meet with BCM staff and get answers to your questions about diabetes management during early adulthood.  Here you will also find exciting games like cornhole, giant jenga, giant checkers, and giant connect four.
• Visit our New Family, Clinical Trials, and Advocacy Tent to learn more about JDRF, our research efforts, and how you can become involved locally. If this is your first Walk, be sure to pick up your 2018 Rookie Baseball Cap and New Family Drawstring Backpack!
• Bandanas for our T1D Walkers are available in T-shirt tent. These are microfiber, multifunctional, and made of stretchable material that allows the scarf to be worn in a variety of ways.

Walker Collection Envelope Instructions

• If you have Walk gifts to turn in, donations should be counted and sealed in a completed Walker Collection Envelope. An accurate total of money contained in the envelope must be clearly written on the outside. Every Walker turning in funds should turn in their own separate envelope.

Important Information Pertaining to Cash/Check Walk Donations 

• Cash and checks that have not been received by JDRF prior to Walk Day, but have been entered into your Participant Center, will temporarily disappear from your Participant Center and fundraising piggy bank on Monday, November 5 to avoid us counting them twice.
• Immediately following the Walk we’ll begin entering all money turned in on Walk Day and expect to be finished within four weeks. Once complete, the donations you turned in on Walk Day will appear on your fundraising page as confirmed donations.

Walk Donation Tips 

• Encourage your donors to visit your personal or team page to make a gift online.
• Don’t hold onto your Walk donations until Walk Day! Send checks or money orders—no cash, please—to JDRF Houston at 1776 Yorktown, Suite 560, Houston, TX 77396.
• Reminder: donations for the 2018 Walk (cash, check, online gifts) can be collected until June 30, 2019.
• Download a Walker Collection Form from your Participant Center to track the gifts you are submitting.
• Write the team name and walker name on each check and/or money order you turn in. This helps ensure all Walk donations are posted to the correct team and/or walker.
• Convert your cash into a more secure check or money order before turning it in.
• We are required by the IRS to send an acknowledgement letter for gifts of $250 and above; we need the donor’s address to do so. For checks under $250, their cancelled check is their receipt.

Incentive Prizes and Awards

• If you raise $250 or more you will qualify for our fundraising rewards program featuring a variety of branded JDRF items at each giving level. All qualified participants will receive a gift catalog following the Walk.
• If you do not wish to receive a catalog, please log in to your Participant Center, click “edit profile” and opt out of the fundraising rewards program located under “event registration information”.
• Please note: Any funds submitted within four weeks after Walk Day are included in qualifying totals for individual fundraising awards. Of course, funds raised after this date will help us to increase the amount of money we are able to direct toward research that will bring us closer to a world without type 1 diabetes.
• Kindly note, team totals, general team donations, and unconfirmed gifts are not applied to the incentive program.

Walk Day Policies

In order to promote a safe and fun event designed to raise funds for JDRF and comply with NRG’s use of their space, the Houston Gulf Coast Chapter has developed the following policy. Without specific approval of the Houston Gulf Coast office, JDRF walkers and other attendees of the event cannot:

• Solicit additional funds for Walk Teams through the sale of items, such as bracelets, etc. Distribute information from a diabetes or other corporate vendor. No independent vendors or clubs can utilize Team Tents or Tables for soliciting purposes.
• Collect names, emails or mailing information from any JDRF walkers outside of collecting funds for the Walk.
• Drive in the Green Lot after 7:00am during Walk Day.
• Make use of tents/tables that have not been designated as your team’s tent/table.

Directions and Parking Information
Complimentary parking is available in the Yellow (Main Street) Lot. Please give yourself adequate time to travel to NRG and park prior to the Opening Ceremony at 9:00am. You can access the NRG parking map here.

Thank you!
Thank you for your continued support, JDRF is the most influential private funder of T1D research in the world and has invested more than $2 billion in T1D research funding. To learn more about the impact your efforts are making on T1D research, visit www.jdrf.org/research. We cannot wait to see you on November 3! If you have any questions, please contact the JDRF Houston Chapter at 713-334-4400 or houston@jdrf.org