Today we participated in our first PKD Foundation walk. Going into this event, I was really excited. Although it was over 2 hours away, we still had plenty of family and friends who planned to join us. We stayed nearby in a hotel room for convenience and around 10:30 a.m. people started arriving to meet us. This is where the story goes downhill. As people arrived at Fountainbleau State Park, they noticed a sign that read "Park Closed". A little confused, friends started to venture out, wondering if they were in the wrong location. They weren't. One member of our team found a park ranger, who told us that the walk was cancelled and someone should have been at the gate to inform us. When Jason and I got to the park, we were greeted by three frazzled volunteers. They were not aware of the situation either. Apparently, it was someone higher up in the foundation's responsibility to communicate with the park. This person, however, conveniently forgot to communicate to the participants that the event would not take place. The volunteers were in a frenzy trying to figure out the best way to handle the situation. Angry and embarrassed would be an understatement to how they felt. You could definitely tell. Vehicles were steadily rolling into the drive way and they had no answers. The volunteers came through the best that they could given the circumstances. They did registration off of the tailgate of a truck and found a bike trail for us to walk on. The bike trail was definitely lacking. It smelled like a dump and was extremely narrow- especially when bikers were coming through- but we all came together and walked for a cause, and that's what really mattered.
Yesterday, I was fuming about this situation. I believe that the PKD Foundation's actions were extremely unprofessional. Those who are higher up in the organization didn't even have the gall to show up and handle the situation themselves. The poor volunteers, who were just as unaware as us, were thrown to the dogs. We had over 30 family and friends drive 2 hours to walk down a stinky bike trail. For that, I am truly sorry. I have intentions of contacting the foundation and becoming more involved. My hope is that next year there will be a family friendly event with entertainment for both adults and kids, food, and activities. This walk could have been so much more, but instead it was disappointing.
To the volunteers, thank you for your efforts. You made the best of the situation that you could. To our family and friends, we are extremely sorry that it was such a let down. We are so thankful that you all support us, though. Y'all are AMAZING! Oh and thanks for the pictures Kandace! Lol
Oh, and to Team Alexander the Great.. You guys rock! It was great to see so much support for your family. Hopefully next year will be better! It was so nice meeting you all and look forward to keeping in touch!
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