8 July 2009

Giving Cause..

| birni
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Nine months ago our beautiful baby boy was born after a perfect full term pregnancy.

But just forty five minutes later he passed away from unexpected complications.

Obviously we are devastated beyond words. Our world has been turned upside down and we have felt the depths of despair. It’s a despair that until you lose a child you can never know. A feeling of imploding that I would not wish for anyone to understand, for that would mean they would have journeyed it.

One of my images, of a bond between mother and baby, is currently entered into Canon’s Creative For a Cause competition. Canon Creative for a Cause is a campaign that encourages Australians and New Zealanders to get creative to win AUD$60,000 and NZD$25,000, respectively, to support a cause of their choice.

Canon believes that a single image can change the world.

Although there is a certain amount of ‘talent’ required, the majority of finalists will be selected by public vote.

For that reason, I ask of you to please visit and vote for my image at
Canon – Creative for a Cause, Photo Gallery.

Voting closes on July 10th, 2009 so time is of the essence.
I would also appreciate it if you would ask your friends, family and colleagues, or even strangers in the street to also vote, and to pass the link on to their own, and so it goes.

My selected cause is SIDS.

I hope that you and your loved ones never need to use the services that SIDS and Kids provide.
Unfortunately, we, and many of our new friends, already have. I would love to be able to give back to them.

At the time of writing this, my image is running 4th of over 300 in it’s category. The top 3 voted will be assured a finalists place.

You can vote once per email address, so again I ask for you to copy this to your MySpace, your Facebook, send your people an email, put a sticky note on your forehead… please do whatever it takes to help give something back to SIDS!

To lose an older person is to lose a past. But to lose a child is to lose a future. Hopes and dreams…

Thanks

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Don’t worry Mono, Mrs Danman voted @ home not me.

No fraudulent application of voting there I hope.

GardeningGirl2:07 am 09 Jul 09

Voted.

Yours is a worthy cause among many. I voted for other photos, one reason being that Sids for Kids is a very well funded charity through its Red Nose Day and another that another excellent photo supporting Sids for Kids is already in the top three in your category along with those supporting two other worthy charities.

Danman said :

I have voted from work, will do so @ home as well…

motleychick said :

So sorry to hear about your loss. Have voted twice. Good luck!

Well lets not stick to the rules of the competition and only vote once for each photo. Of course you would have to deliberately cheat and register under another email address. Sorry but that doesn’t make you two people. I’m sure any charity would not be happy with being supported in that way.

NOTE: There is no limit to how many photos you vote for in this and any other category.

Sorry for the loss of your beautiful baby, I know what you are going through, you have my vote.

Mike Bessenger10:38 pm 08 Jul 09

Also sorry for your loss. You have my vote.

I’ve voted – I’m so sorry for your loss:(

I am so sorry for your loss. What did you name your beautiful boy?

So sorry to hear about your loss. Have voted twice. Good luck!

I’ve voted. So sorry to hear about your son.

Just got back from lunch and I admit, I skimmed the post… My sincerest apoligies….

I have voted from work, will do so @ home as well…

Good on you for chosing SIDS… Ill get back under my rock now…

Mental note – learn to read posts entirely.

Great idea, I’ve voted and sent info on.
There was an earlier post http://the-riotact.com/?p=12770 (sorry can’t link)
for the same competition – this one raising money for a humidicrib.

Have voted and passed the link on to my workmates.

@Dan – I’m sorry that you feel that I am ‘making a material gain from my tragedy’ and I certainly wish you and your wife well with your new arrival. Embrace every moment. I’m sorry if I upset you with my own story that did not have a happy ending.

In the dark ages, until just a decade or two ago, the death of a child was taboo. The child was simply made out to not exist. My grandmother and my aunt, amongst millions of others, were forced stum about their beautiful babies whether miscarried, stillborn or neonatal death. It was easier for society to pretend they did not exist.

Thankfully these days it is different, and we have the likes of SIDS and, although their are still some, the lucky ones who have not lived through it, who believe that you need to ‘just get over it’, thankfully most of our friends and family have been there to support us.

@Dan the ‘coin’ that you speak of is $60,000 that is donated from Canon to the winning entry’s cause of choice, in my case it is to be SIDS. Material gain? For me to be giving back to SIDS, a repayment of sorts for the help and support they have given us unconditionally throughout our horrible journey.
‘Emotive’? You betcha. It’s reality. That image is of a mother and child who are happy and alive today. It is something that I do not have. The image is of direct relevence to my chosen cause – the special bond between mother and child. I could have chosen a nice snapshot of a tree, but would that invoke the heartfelt votes that are hopefully assisting in gaining a $60,000 donation to SIDS? I think not.
We live in an emotive world – the next time you are at the supermarket look at where they have placed the lollies, at whose eyelevel, and the colorful packaging. Emotive advertising is not a ploy, it is human nature that we make choices based on what we see and the reaction it envokes.
Yes, there is a prize pack for the ‘winner’, but their is certainly no coin to be gained for me.

Thankyou all so much for your votes. I hope that you keep them coming. I also hope with all of my heart that you will never need the close encounter of the SIDS kind, any of you.

Having a friend who lost her child recently, her 7th child who was also the first long awaited boy, I can only offer my condolances and sympathy.

And a vote.

And a pass it on.

Because you seem to be coming across as lazy and judgemental, I have hit up their Terms and Conditions for you.
She receives no ‘coin’, maybe some Canon merchandise or a few products, but nothing much in the way of personal gain compared to the AUD$60,000 and bagful of NZ waste paper that goes to charities of their choice.

From: http://www1.canon.com.au/creativeforacause/tellmemore.aspx
The Campaign

Canon is urging Australians and New Zealanders to get Creative for a Cause by taking a photograph that represents a cause that they are passionate about and uploading it, along with a 25 word description of what their photo means and who their selected charity or charitable organisation is, to the Creative for a Cause website.

24 images as selected by popular vote and editor’s picks will be reviewed by a judging panel who will then select the top 5 finalists.

From the top 5 images, one entry from Australia and one from New Zealand will be chosen based on popularity and photographic merit. Canon will donate $60,000 AUD to the Australian entrant’s nominated recipient and $25,000 NZD to the New Zealander entrant’s nominated recipient.

In addition to the cash donation, Canon will reward the winning entries and finalists with a Canon product prize pack.

dan, i think you missed the mark totally on this one. SIDS and Kids get the money, allowing them to work towards prevention of infant death. I am amazed that you missed that bit.

Birni, i have sent the link to my company – the team will vote, or not. I hope we can help you in some way, we will be helping a great cause, and a very brave person.
I applaud you for being brave enough to enter the photo, the emotion of your loss must still be very raw. Good luck to you and your family in the future.

How is it material gain Dan? The winner doesnt keep the prize money, it goes to a charity/cause of their choice.

I beleive that coin is to support a cause of their choice Danman. In this person’s case SIDS which is probably quite appropriate.

It’s not like she is going to profit from winning the competition personally is she?

I agree that your plight is tragic, as my wife is pregnant at this time, and your photo is emotive, but making a material gain from a tragedy ?

If someone else posted a story and link to a photo competition, that was not emotive, would it get posted ?

Sorry if I offend anyone, but I find it depressing that you are using your babies horrible death as leverage to try and earn some coin.

Holden Caulfield11:14 am 08 Jul 09

That’s a terrible story birni, thoughts are with you. 🙁

Taking this post at face value so I’m there – good luck now and for the future.

and mine. 3 email addresses here.

I have journeyed it.

Have voted for your image.

Clown Killer10:01 am 08 Jul 09

Count me in.

Having 2 children I cannot comprehend what you have gone through. I have 2 email addresses, so I have voted twice for you. My thoughts are with you.

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