Social Media Helps PMC Reach Fundraising Goals
BOSTON (CBS) - When cyclists take off from Sturbridge and Wellesley this weekend in the Pan Mass Challenge, they'll be raising critical dollars for the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
Right now, it is crunch time at the PMC headquarters in Needham.
Volunteers are getting everything ready for the 5,300 riders who'll participate this weekend.
Year-to-date, fundraising is up 10 percent.
Web Extra: Lisa Hughes talks to Billy Starr
"The PMC is in good shape, as we go in to event weekend," says founder Billy Starr. "We have a 34 million goal and we are certainly tracking toward it."
Starr says social media is proving to be a powerful tool to meet their fundraising goals.
"Our e-gift or online giving continues to grow," he says. "People are taking their PMC profiles and putting them on Facebook and reaching a larger network."
The organization was founded by Starr in 1980, and has since raised $303 for the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. This year's ride has six two day routes that range from 153 miles to 190 miles, and five one-day rides that range from 25 to 110 miles.