Since our last update in August, there have been a few things happen for the Foundation that we are excited to share! First, as we had discussed in our previous update the Foundation set up a small table at the 2018 MCAS Miramar Air Show. We were able to help raise awareness, tell the illustrious history of the Lincoln and promote our current efforts to raise funds for the restoration. We got to catch up with old friends and fellow Raiders currently serving within the command. We hope that this venue can allow us a full display of the RaiderMobile once complete, displayed proudly next to the mighty KC-130J BattleHerks of today. On October 1st, we held our second raffle based fundraising event in San Diego at the AleSmith Brewing Company. Thanks to their continued support and the donations collected we were able to raise just over $1100.00. Many thanks to all those who were able to come out that evening and make it a success. That following weekend we were also in attendance at the 1st Annual El Toro reunion where we not only raised a total of $2300.00 but also picked the winning tickets for the KC-130 inspired Bremont watch, the Joe Everson Iwo Jima Painting, and the surprise offering of the second Bremont watch that brought in a donation of $1000.00 thanks to Iris Senibaldi as she purchased it for her husband who is a former Raider. We hope all the winners enjoy those amazing items that helped us support our efforts. It was great to catch up with so many old faces and meet new ones that evening.
A week later the RaiderMobile Foundation attended the MCATA reunion in New Orleans and was given the opportunity by the president, Mr. Rich Driscoll, to share our efforts with those in attendance. That weekend was quite enjoyable, and we were fortunate enough to meet a few members who fondly remember the “Tanker Lincoln” from its infancy to include Mr. Bill Armishaw and his wonderful wife Dianne as he was one of the original 10 members who assisted in the purchase of the Lincoln back in 1984. The 2019 MCATA reunion will be taking place in San Diego from 3-6 October and we look forward to again being in attendance and sharing the current progress of the car’s restoration. We hope that those of you who are reading this and have an interest in attending will join us for another fun-filled weekend during this event. We will also be having another fundraiser that weekend at AleSmith Brewing Company. For those of you who are interested in joining, or finding out more about the Marine Corps Air Transport Association (MCATA) and the upcoming reunion please visit their webpage at www.mcata.com.
It is with great pleasure to announce that the IRS has now approved our 501(c)3 status, and the RaiderMobile Foundation is now officially a Non-Profit. With that milestone, we held our third fundraiser event, this time in Dallas Forth Worth, at HopFusion Ale Works on 23 February 2019, and raised $1346.00. The photos attached to this update are from this event. In concurrence with this event, we also held another “DOUBLE YOUR DONATION”. The foundation doubled the amount raised and in total deposited $2692.00 towards the restoration. Many Thanks to all who came out and attended. We look forward to doing his again in November 2019 to celebrate the Marine Corps Birthday.
To date, we have raised just under $26,000.00 and are looking to reach the $30,000.00 goal to remove the Lincoln from its current preservation and begin the car’s restoration prior to May 2019. Please continue to follow along with our progress by visiting our website at www.theraidermobile.com, or our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/theraidermobilefoundation, and or donate at our GoFundMe Page at https://www.gofundme.com/OpTankerLincoln and as always we thank you for your continued support.
Semper Fi.
