Little Tick Big Problem

Little Tick Big Problem

Paint May Lyme Green is a campaign to spread Lyme disease awareness across North America. May is Lyme disease awareness month. This year do your part to help bring our disease into the Lyme light.

It doesn’t matter where you live, you can help and participate in this campaign. This year’s campaign is made up of three main parts; a Public Service Announcement, a Viral Campaign and a Visual Campaign.

In the Lyme community we are use to relying on each other to find doctors, get advice on treatments, understanding our illness and for support that we often can not even get from our families. If you are active within the Lyme community you know that you are part of one big family that knows no boarders. It is filled with compassionate people who are always only a click away even if they live on the other side of the world.

I have never seen nor heard a PSA for Lyme disease. I know that some do exist, but I do not live in an “endemic” state. I didn’t know anything about the disease until I was diagnosed with it. How can this be possible when there were up to an estimated 422,000 new cases of Lyme contracted in 2008? (statistic from www.underourskin.com)

It is time that our disease became “mainstream”. With more new cases of Lyme disease each year than of HIV, West Nile, Swine Flu, and Avian Flu combined, how can it be that the vast majority of population knows nothing about it.

It is time for change. We need to be that change. Who better to educate the population about our disease than us. The people who know first hand just how devastating Lyme disease can be.

There are so many ways you can help spread lyme disease awareness. Our goal with the Paint May Lyme Green campaign is to give you some of the tools you need to create an impact in your own community. If you don’t, who will?

To make this project truly huge and effective, we need your help. Yes, we need donations for the production of the PSA, but there is more. One of the biggest thing you can do to help is to spread the word. Get on all your social networks and tell everyone!

Public Service Announcement (Commercial)

We are going to make and distribute a Public Service Announcement for Lyme disease.

WEBSITE- The call to action at the end of the PSA will direct viewers to this website created specifically for the PSA.

This site will be a source of where to find information. There will be a page listing and linked to existing Lyme disease organizations. This will allow people to find the organization nearest to them. There will also be pages listing other resources related to Lyme; blogs, online support groups, books…

PRESS KIT- A press kit will be produced to go along with the PSA.

I have contacted a friend at a local television station near me to find out how we can best go about getting our PSA aired. She told me to make it go along with a current news story. That should be easy! May is the perfect time for the media to publish/air stories urging people to “take care this tick season…”

Another friend of mine has written quite a few press kits in her time, she has volunteered to help me put ours together. We are making more connections everyday to ensure that our PSA is aired.

HOW YOU CAN HELP-

  • Tell everyone about this campaign and ask them to make a donation. Share links to the Paint May Lyme Green information on all your social networks and at your local support groups.
  • We will be depending on the Lyme community to bring PSA the and press kit to your local stations. Including letters from your community about the importance of spreading Lyme disease awareness in you area will help encourage the stations to air the Lyme PSA. We need you to tell them specifically why this PSA is important to your community right now (May 2010).
  • Write letters to your local news media telling them why it is important that they do news reports and articles on Lyme risk in your area. Tell them that May is Lyme disease awareness month. Encourage them to play the PSA we are making for this May.
  • The more people that make a big deal out of Lyme disease in your area the better. Reporters want to report on current stories that effect the people in their communities.

Viral Campaign

WEBSITE- We will create another website to collect all of your stories. These can be written and include a photo, or by telling your story on camera. We are encouraging as many of you as possible to go with the video option. On the first day of May we will all post the link to our stories on our personal facebook, myspace, blog, twitter, etc profiles. Ask everyone you know to read/watch your story and share it with everyone they know.

To make the campaign cohesive, we will be providing a general guideline for these posts. Stay tuned for that in the next few days.

We will also be running a viral campaign for the Public Service Announcement.

HOW YOU CAN HELP-

  • Obviously you can help by submitting your story. But, there is more you can to to make this part of the campaign a success. Offer to help other Lymies with their stories. If you have a video camera make yourself available to film someone else’s story too. Ask at your local support groups if anyone would like to share their story. Upload video submissions to YouTube or to Lymenaide’s mobile me account and we will add them to the Lymenaide YouTube page. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE GUIDELINES AND A SAMPLE VIDEO SUBMISSION.
  • A few additional production companies have already contacted us offering to help with personal interviews. If you have a production company and you want to help please contact us at ashvantol@lymenaide.com
  • If you are in New York, San Francisco or Los Angeles and would like to get involved with the interviews going on there send me and email- ashvantol@lymenaide.com.  I will connect you with the production companies in those areas.
  • Are you really good at uploading videos? We are looking for someone to help with the organization and support of this part of the project. We want all videos uploaded on youtube for easy sharing.
  • When the PSA and interviews hit the internet help spread them like wildfire!

Visual Campaign

GREEN RIBBONS- “Ribbons Across America” is a ribbon campaign that was started by S-L-A.M.org to help raise Lyme disease awareness and to serve as a tribute to those who have lost their battle to this disease. Ask permission from your town council before putting ribbons up on public property.

You can get ribbons from papermart.com. This is the most cost effective ribbon wholesaler I found online. They have Lime Green Ribbon in 3 different sizes-

This year lets do even more!

FLYERS- We will be providing Lyme disease awareness graphics for use on flyers for you to print out at home. We encourage you to pass them out all over your community this May. You will be able to print ready made flyers or just the graphics so that you can taylor the information to suit your area.

POSTERS, BANNERS, STICKERS AND SHIRTS- We will also be organizing these for you to easily purchase online. All graphics are donated to the cause. The 10% revenue raised from all items sold will be donated toward the Paint May Lyme Green campaign. In our experience this is a cheaper option than personally having items like this printed anywhere locally.

We have chosen to use Zazzle.com for the online printing. Their prices were lower than the competition and you can customize the items to your liking. CLICK HERE TO REDIRECT TO LYMENAIDE’S PAINT MAY LYME GREEN ZAZZLE STORE.

HOW YOU CAN HELP-

  • #1 participate. Hang those ribbons and posters, pass out those flyers. Paint your town Lyme green this May!
  • If you are an artist and would like to submit a Lyme awareness image to be used in this campaign, send us a message at- ashvantol@lymenaide.com.
  • Ask your local support groups to go in together on purchasing awareness items. The online companies give discounts for bulk orders.
  • Wear your awareness shirts and pins this May. Hang posters, ribbons and don your awareness stickers all month.

ADDITIONAL IDEAS OF WAYS TO HELP OUT

  • Students, ask your teachers if you can do a presentation to your class this May about Lyme disease.
  • Go traditional, have a bake sale to raise funds to donate to the project.
  • Offer your services in exchange for a donation made to the Paint May Lyme Green project. I have offered to paint a mural for my friend. Instead of paying me I asked her to donate to the project.
  • Ask your local morning show if you can be a guest in May to talk about Lyme. Especially hit the college’s if you have any around. Even the smallest college has their own radio station and now, television channel too. Even if it’s just for the campus it is spreading awareness.
  • Help raise money for the campaign by using your video to ask for donations. I wrote a short letter to my friends and family with links to where to make donations and my YouTube video. I asked everyone to please donate to help spread Lyme disease awareness. SEE MY DONATION REQUEST LETTER.
  • If you think there is a missing part of this campaign that you could fill tell us! Send an email to ashvantol@yahoo.com

HOW TO DONATE-

Paint May Lyme Green is an associated project with P.A.N.D.O.R.A. Your tax-deductible donation receipt will show as having been paid to Patient Alliance for Neuroendocrine Immune Disorders Org. a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.

Your tax deductible donation to Paint May Lyme Green can be made through facebook causes. Credit card accepted. You do not have to be a member of facebook to donate. Follow this link- CLICK HERE TO REDIRECT TO CAUSES

We encourage everyone to make their donations through causes and P.A.N.D.O.R.A. However, if you prefer to donate directly to Lymenaide we have set up a PayPal account. Donating to Lymenaide directly is not tax deductible. CLICK HERE TO REDIRECT TO PAYPAL

Stay up to day with all of the Paint May Lyme Green happenings on Lymenaide.com. Find links to all the resources that mentioned in this letter. See sample videos to give you some ideas for creating your own. Read about what others are planning for their communities. Find the inspiration and resources you need to paint your community Lyme green this May.

Follow this link to the complete- PAINT MAY LYME GREEN CAMPAIGN