Ever since I came to Michigan for business school, I've been volunteering at 826michigan, the local chapter of the awesome 826 National organization.  It's very similar to 826 Valencia or 826 Chicago or your local 826 of choice, but we have a totally awesome robot store as our storefront.  We do tutoring, creative writing workshops, publishing, field trips, and a lot of other activities to support youth ages 8 to 18 all over southeast Michigan.  

Just like our big brother at 826 Valencia, 826michigan has a Spelling Bee For Cheaters.  And my team of two - me and a great friend, Ira Shaughnessy - intend on not just winning the thing, but blowing all previous fundraising records away.  And we need your help; please donate to our team at http://www.gifttool.com/athon/MyFundraisingPage?ID=1574&AID=1470&PID=183941 . 

Writing is incredibly important to me.  As a child, I was a rabid devourer of books, magazines, and whatever else I could get my hands on - to the point where I'd stick my nose in a book in the middle of class, oblivious to my teachers and fellow students.  In high school, I had teachers who taught me the difference between storytelling and fine writing - learning that the content itself isn't enough, that the felicitous turn of a phrase can make all the difference.  In college, I had a professor who fundamentally changed the way I approached writing - Dr. Pat Hoy - who not only taught me how much thought and foresight goes into constructing a work of writing (Virginia Woolf didn't think in streams of consciousness; her essays were painstakingly constructed, with as few as 75-100 words a day surviving in her final manuscripts) and why a strong vocabulary is important, but how to use the act of writing itself to question my assumptions and mold my own thinking.  

Writing well is a skill that makes everything else you do better.  It makes you a better communicator, it makes you more observant of the world around you, and, unquestionably, it makes you a better thinker.  826's focus on helping young students find joy and confidence in their writing is near and dear to my heart and I'm proud to have the opportunity to help the students of southeastern Michigan find their voices.

But we need your help to fund these great programs.  I would be thrilled if you could join our fearless band of Honest Cheaters, Dirty Rotten Spellers, and Mustachioed Heroes in lending a helping hand.  Our goal is to raise $5,000, which would be the most ever raised by a single team in 826michigan history.  Also, it would put our team directly into the finals, where we could win a big honkin' trophy.  And, to the person who donates the most, I will send you a signed copy of whatever Dave Eggers work you want.  I don't have signed Dave Eggers works lying around, but he'll be at our little hootenanny, and I'll make sure he signs your choice.  Probably by knifepoint.

And, in the hopes that every little bit helps, I've changed my profile pictures on Twitter and Facebook to one with me proudly rocking a sweet (fake) 'stache.  Every time you see my mug holding up that mug of beer, I hope you're reminded of your kindness in donating or ashamed that you haven't yet.