1st Annul Ari Foss Foundation Memorial Walk 5k

From 10:00 am until 1:00 pm

Walking, food trucks, vendors, a Memorial Area, a bubble area and more.

Additional information will be added as we have it. We are still finalizing a few details, but you can already sign up to walk, fundraise and/or be a sponsor. To sponsor, buy the sponsor ticket level you would like to sponsor. Please contact us if you have any questions about the event.

Join our Facebook event page for updates - https://www.facebook.com/events/1775088986694331.

FAQ

Do I need to walk the full 5k?

No. Each lap around Park Circle is 1/2 miles. 6 laps plus the start area will get you to 5k. You can walk the number of laps you feel comfortable with. Only want to walk 3 laps? That works. Only want to walk 1 lap? That works too. Our event is designed for you to do what works for you.

Do I have to fundraise?

No, but we ask that each person or group create a fundraising page or team and share the link with your network through social email, emails and texting. We ask that each person fundraise at least $225 in addition to the ticket price to help us reach our event fundraising goal.

We will have a prize for the individual and group that raises the most donated money (outside of purchasing tickets). The prizes are to be determined.

Anyone who fundraises at least $225 will receive a grab bag and an event shirt. There will be more, but we are still working on the details.

Is there are rain policy?

The Memorial Walk is rain or shine. This is a fundraiser, so no refunds will be given. What if the event is canceled due to a hurricane? We will attempt to reschedule, but we do not guarantee the event can be rescheduled. Again, no refunds will be given if the event is canceled due to a hurricane. Funds raised go towards helping us help families when the unthinkable happens.

I purchased a ticket, but cannot attend. Can I get a refund?

No. All purchases are final.

Can I volunteer?

Yes, we are looking for volunteers to fill a few rolls - helping setup, working the event and helping breakdown after the event. Please contact us for more information.

Volunteers will receive a free ticket to walk. We ask that volunteers create a fundraising page.

Auction FAQ

Does my business need to be a sponsor to donate an item?

No. Auction items can be donated by a business or an individual.

What items can be donated to the auction?

For ease of handling, we prefer gift cards to restaurants or retail locations. All other items will be on a case-by-case basis. All items must be brand new, in original packaging and unused. If we are unable to use a donated item, we will donate it to another non-profit that can use the item. All auctions items are subject to approval by the Ari Foss Foundation. Please contact us with any questions.

Where can I send an auction item?

Auction items can be mailed or delivered to:
Ari Foss Foundation
1259 Remount Rd
North Charleston, SC 29406

We are not always in the office, so appointments are required to drop off items.

How do I pick up my winning auction?

Items can be picked up at the Memorial Walk or at our office (by appointment) or we can mail it (for an additional charge). If an auction winner cannot pick up the item at the Memorial Walk, the auction winner has until the end of October 2025 to pickup the item from the office (by appointment only) or pay to have us mail it. Any unclaimed won auctions will be considered a donation, and we will reuse it for a future event.

Please contact us with any other questions. We want everyone to enjoy the Memorial Walk.

Thank you to our sponsors:

Silver Sponsor

Bluewater Property Management, LLC

InvisibleGrief.com

Information about the Ari Foss Foundation:

The Ari Foss Foundation was created to help parents and families with financial assistance for cremations or funerals when there is a stillbirth (intrauterine fetal demise 20+ weeks) or neonatal loss.

The Ari Foss Story:

The Ari Foss Foundation was started in honor of our son, Ari Foss Silverman. Ari was our first child. Ari was our beautiful baby boy. We were so excited to meet our little man. Ari was born on July 30, 2014 at 10:06 pm. Ari never cried though. Ari never took a breath. Ari had no heartbeat. Our son was gone. We were devastated and attempting to grasp what happened. In an instant, we went from what should have been the happiest moment of our lives to experiencing the worst, most tragic moment of our lives.

Ari’s memory lives on through the Ari Foss Foundation helping families when the unthinkable happens.

Ari’s Parents,
Aaron and Laura Silverman

Why We are Fundraising:

Currently, we work with the Medical University of South Carolina and Roper St Francis Healthcare to refer families to us when the family requests help paying for a cremation or funeral. Our goal is to provide our Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program for the entire state of South Carolina.

To achieve this goal, we decided to use South Carolina’s Perinatal Regionalization System to identify the hospitals that treat the most high-risk patients. The Perinatal Regionalization System is covered by five (5) Regional Perinatal Centers (RPCs).

MUSC is an RPC covering eight (8) counties. There are four (4) other RPCs: GHS Greenville Memorial Hospital, McLeod Regional Medical Center of the Pee Dee, Palmetto Health Richland and Spartanburg Medical Center.

We plan to expand into these other RPCs as our funding levels support widening the geographic footprint where we can offer the Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program.

By expanding into those 4 RPC hospitals, we would be providing our services to the highest-risk patients in the entire state. We will provide our services to additional hospitals after the 4 RPC hospitals, but our immediate goal is to provide service to the entire state by leveraging South Carolina's Perinatal Regionalization System hospital structure.

All of our fundraising is directly tied to achieving this mission in two ways.

The first is available funds to pay for cremations and funerals. We do not want to expand before we have sufficient funds to fill the patient referral needs. The last thing we want to do is decline a grieving family’s fund request because our Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program does not have enough funds.

The second is to support operations in implementing the Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program. Operating funds are vital for staffing and office needs and marketing (including educational brochures) for the Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program.

The Data:

According to SC DHEC, there were 358 stillborn babies (fetal deaths) in 2022* and 256 Neonatal deaths (less than 28 days) in 2022* in South Carolina.

That is 614 potential families per year that could use our Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program. Since low-income families are disproportionately impacted by stillbirths and neonatal loss, a majority of those families need our assistance.

*the most recent published information on SC DHEC's website

Use of Funds Raised through the Memorial Walk:

We are committed to being transparent with where and how donations are used. Donations will be used as directed by the donor; either to our Generals Operating Funds or Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program Funds. If a donor does not select a designtion, the donated funds will go towards General Operating Funds.

All other Memorial Walk funds (sponsorships, ticket sales, auction sales, other purchases, etc) will go towards our General Operating Funds.

Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program:

As always, donations to the Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program (Assistance Program) are only used to pay for Cremation and Funeral related expenses.

For the Assistance Program, the assistance we offer is

For Cremations up to $500:

Cremation and/or other professional services (including, but not limited to, cremation, paperwork fees, urn or other cremation container and professional services).
Remembrance jewelry/merchandise, similar items or additional money for a specialty urn.

For Funerals up to $1,200:

Burial (including, but not limited to, gravesite purchase, opening/closing gravesite, funeral home and professional services)
Casket (including, but not limited to, casket, transportation of casket (hearse) and professional services)
Headstone

To date, we have provided an average financial assistance of $411.81 for cremations and $711.53 for funerals. These amounts exclude the credit card processing fees many crematories and funeral homes charge.

General Operating Funds:

General Operating Funds will be used for general operating funds that include our marketing staff member, website redesign, software, office supplies and marketing (including the Cremation and Funeral Financial Assistance Program brochures nurses and hospital staff provide to families).

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