Hi,

My name is Maddie Blaauw, and I'm a college senior studying bioengineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. In August, I joined a 501(c)(3) nonprofit group of 23 other students at my university called Illini 4000, and we cycle across the country from New York to San Francisco in the summer to raise money for cancer research and document the experiences of those with cancer. I'm contacting businesses to ask if you can help us with this. This year we aim to raise $150,000. It was personal from the start, as I want a career engineering medicine. But it became even more charged when I was diagnosed with a brain tumor causing epilepsy a month after joining the organization, in September 2021.

After this diagnosis, I refuse to give up on my goal of the summer bike ride.

I'm reaching out now to ask if you can help Illini 4000 in our journey to help those with cancer. We are asking you for any donations that you would be able to make to our organization. As our goal is ultimately to raise money for cancer research, we would prefer monetary donations. However, if this is not possible for you, it could be product-related instead. I've attached a packet describing different fundraising levels after the conclusion of this. We are a 501(c)(3) organization, so all donations to us are tax-deductible. And definitely check out our website https://www.illini4000.org/ and my specific rider page at https://www.illini4000.org/2022-riders/maddieblaauw for pictures of rides in previous years and more information on donating.

We would be more than happy to set up a phone or zoom meeting with you if you'd like to talk more about our organization.

Thanks,
Maddie Blaauw

Sponsorship Levels:

Jersey Level: Sponsors donating $1000.00 and higher (in financial and/or product donation) will be recognized at the Jersey Level. The logo of Jersey Level sponsors will appear on the team jersey, team support vehicle, and the organization website. Sponsors will receive a team jersey. Logo and donation must be received by February 1, 2022, in order to ensure logo appearance on the jersey. The sponsor will also be given a dedicated post on our Instagram and Facebook.

Wheel Level: Sponsors donating $650.00 - $999.99 (in financial and/or product donation) will be recognized at the Wheel Level. The brand logo of Wheel Level sponsors will appear on the team support vehicle and organization website. Logo and donation must be received by April 10, 2022, in order to ensure logo appearance on the support vehicle. The sponsor will also be given a dedicated post on our Instagram and Facebook.

Saddle Level: Sponsors donating $300.00 - $649.99 (in financial and/or product donation) will be recognized at the Saddle Level. The brand logo of Saddle Level sponsors will appear on the organization website. There is no deadline for logo submission to appear on the website. The sponsor will also be given a dedicated post on our Instagram and Facebook.

Brake Level: Sponsors donating $150.00 - $299.99 (in financial and/or product donation) will be recognized at the Brake Level. The sponsor will be given a dedicated post on our Instagram and Facebook page.

**Sponsors are required to provide all logos in a vector format by the required deadlines to fundraising@illini4000.org**