The past few weeks

The past few days people have been asking me “what’s wrong”? I am now going to try and explain some of what I've been feeling for the past few days.

On Oct 7^th my daughter, my youngest son, Anthony and I attended the 2012 Buddy Walk for the Inland area group, Up for Down. We went there first under the impression that it was only going to be $5.00 each because we didn't want to par-take in the walk, but visit with everyone there and try and sell some shirts that we had made prior to the walk.  My husband and I were told a few weeks before this that the shirts would be great at the buddy walk, no where were we told not to show up and start selling them but were in fact told to possibly set up a table there.  I had told the women that said this to me that I didn't think I would have enough time to get such an amount for that many people but I would show up and possibly take orders for what I didn't have.

So here we were at the walk, with a small box of shirts and yes raffle tickets that we had made for an iPad 2 that we were trying to help raise even more money for our team with.  The tickets read iPad 2 raffle and all proceeds over the cost of the iPad 2 would go to the group Up for Downs through DSALA under our team AAA (Anthony’s Amazing All-Stars).  We almost had enough for the product when we showed up at the walk on the 7^th and had sold only a few tickets there along with a few shirts; one of which had been ordered before the walk date.

We get to the walk and I am charges $25 for both me and my daughter, which is far more than the $5 my husband said would be ok to spend, so I had over paid by $40, which I’m a little upset but the money goes to the programs we ourselves were trying to raise money for so I was on the fence about the whole thing.

The baby and I left my daughter at the table that someone was kind enough to give to us while we were there, and with me carrying him started the walk with the whole group.  I walked about a ¼ of the mile and he was asleep so I turned back only to see one of the ladies I had talked to before over by my daughter asking her a bunch of questions.  I walk over there, put the baby in his stroller and start talking to the lady.

She first asked me if I had sold any tickets, I told her we had sold what I believed was 5 at the time as I didn't know the exact number.  I was then told that it was a problem, not the complete nature of the problem but that it was causing a problem, so I had my daughter put the shirts and the tickets into the car and I then talked to member of the DSALA on the ladies cell phone (I’m not using names of the people involved because I personally do not want or need any more trouble from anyone).

I talked to him for about 20 minutes and I told him I understand that it was causing some problems and had in fact told my daughter to put everything away.  I was not aware that I was causing so many problems, trying to raise money for this group that we had become semi close to over the past year.

We left the walk a little early one because the baby would never let me put him down long enough to relax my arms, 2 the walk was over and there was just a bunch of games going on and 3 I was tired from not getting much rest during the week prior to this.

I get home and relax. A few days go by and I post that the last day for the ticket sale would be October 19^th, so to jump in and buy before its too late…I had posted this on a few different DS groups on Facebook.  On Friday I get a private message from someone I rather like, from the biggest group that I connect with (which I have been rather laps on since all this started).

I told her I would call her the next day because I was due in her area and it would be great to see her and give her the shirt that she had wanted to get.  I called her and my whole day just went down from there.  She told me that she had received a call and was told to take my site info down off the site because what I was doing was wrong and was causing a lot of problems…that I wasn't even aware of. 

She explained to me that because it had the group name Up for Downs and DSALA on the tickets that it was illegal.  Yes you heard me right; the names make it Illegal for me to sell.  It could cause more problems for everyone involved if I don’t stop selling them and that my site was removed because of the tickets on there.  I also had posted that the money over the cost of the shirts was going to be part of our donation to the DSALA Buddy walk in November.  I was told that the shirts are nice but that I needed to take the site down, remove everything about it and then I could re-post it just for the shirts, not saying where the money would go.

I didn't have time to change it that day as we were just walking out the door to go to a birthday party, the first party we have been invited to for a child since Anthony was born so of course we wanted to be there. We show up, had a good time and go home.  The next day I’m sitting in my living room with my kids watching TV with the baby in my lap when my phone goes off.  It’s the guy from DSALA calling me.  I answer the phone; here is a VERY brief part of the call, or at least the jest of it.

Him: Hi we talked on the phone the other day…

Me: Yes I remember, sorry I haven’t called; I've been rather sick and am just starting to feel better.

Him: I’m calling to make sure you understand….I need you to remove the site and stop selling the shirts.

Overall the whole conversation made me upset and rather hurt that something so minor as the woman I had talked to at the walk could have fixed to everyone being upset and it causing me so many problems over names that I didn't even know I couldn't use on tickets.  Forget the shirts; I was more worried about the tickets so we could get enough to give the iPad 2 away without a loss.  So yes, now I’m depressed, upset and very hurt by everyone.

I like the group but now I feel like I’m alone in this again, like everything we have done was for nothing and I’m not even sure if we’ll attend anymore events for the group we had once felt so close with again.

As for the Buddy walk next month; I’m not sure but my stomach is in a bunch of knots just thinking about it.
The shirt site is back up and running, without the tickets or any names other than my own on there now.  Please feel free to share the site, tell your friends about these great shirts for kids and adults with Down Syndrome.

Down Syndrome Shirts