Date: Sunday, October 18, 2009

Location: Nomahegan Park, Cranford, NJ

Registration opens: 12 noon
2-Mile Walk Start: 2:00 pm
The Walk will take place rain or shine

Are you ready for Walk Day? Here is important Walk Day information that you need to know. Team captains: please share this information with everyone walking on your team. We have lots of fun lined up for the entire family!

Directions to Nomahegan Park - Parking for the walk is at Union County College, 1033 Springfield Avenue, Cranford:

From the Garden State Parkway, GSP to exit 138 and follow signs to Kenilworth. That puts you on Boulevard. Follow Boulevard straight approx .25-.40 mile) and turn left onto Springfield Ave. The college will be on your right. Walk across the street to Nomahegan Park.

From Rt. 22 (East or West) exit at Springfield Ave., and proceed east towards Westfield. Pass through four traffic lights. Just before the fifth traffic light turn right onto Springfield Ave. (County Road 615). Proceed to the traffic light. Turn right into Union County College to park. Walk across the street to Nomahegan Park.

For Local Traffic, be aware that the Cranford Street Fair will take place the day of our Walk.

After you Park: The first thing you should do is go to the Check-In tables and turn in your donations. Every walker or team captain who attends the walk and hands in an envelope which contains $150+, or has online donations of more than $150 will receive one t-shirt. If you are a team captain, please inform your walkers that they each need to raise $150 in order to receive a t-shirt. If you have raised $1,000+, you will be given a special ticket at Check-In for the Grand Club tent.

Grand Club $1000+: Members of the Grand Club will have VIP access to the Grand Club tent featuring specialty refreshments, a commemorative 2009 Grand Club Walk Day t-shirt, and more! VIP passes will be distributed at the Check-In tent for anyone who raises $1,000+. Congratulations to our current Grand Club Members!

Walk Day Refreshments: Refreshments and water will be available.

For the Kids: Entertainment this year includes: Home Depot Kids Workshop, Craft Tent, Spin Art, Moon Bounce, Bagpipers, Snake Man, Fun Bus, Drums & Disabilities, Magician, Autism Speaks tattoos, team photos, and Community Resource Fair.

Team Pictures: Team pictures will be taken throughout the day by a roaming photographer. Photos will be posted to the North/Central NJ Facebook Fan Page shortly after the walk.

A Meeting Place for your Team: It's not always easy finding your team mates in such a big crowd. Plan a location to meet your team. If you want to keep it simple, make sure your team mates have the Team Captain's cell phone number. Some suggestions for meeting places are near the stage or the moon bounce. Some people make a banner or hold up a sign.

The Walk Will Start at 2:00 PM: You will see the balloon arch at the start line. There will be a countdown, so don't start until the countdown is finished! Until 2:00 PM, please enjoy all that we have put together for you, your friends and your family to enjoy!

The Walk Route: The Walk is about 2-miles around the park. Strollers are welcome! With over 7000 walkers, the walk route is very crowded. Please exercise caution if you are brining your dog. Use a short leash and keep them close along the walk route. Our entertainment and refreshments will be at the walk site until about 3:30 PM.

Walk Day Total: We will have many wonderful volunteers in our accounting office preparing our Walk Day total. We will try to have a tentative figure after the Walk on Walk Day, but please look for e-mails to follow with more accurate totals.

Check List for the Week Leading Up to the Walk:

• Follow-up with the people you have already asked for support and have not heard back from.
• It's not too late to e-mail your fundraising web-page, or personal fundraising letter. Or you can mail your personal fundraising letter by snail mail and include a return envelope.
• Make sure your team has a way of finding you on Walk Day.
• You can send your donations to Autism Speaks at 1060 State Road, Princeton, NJ 08540 instead of bringing them with you on Walk Day. Your personal donation form should be sent along with each check. It is located at the bottom left hand corner of your webpage.
• We will continue to accept donations for the North/Central NJ Walk, and credit walk teams until December 31.

Team captains - Make Sure all of Your Walkers Receive These Walk Day Details

If you have any questions, please call the Autism Speaks office at 609-228-7315, or e-mail NewJersey@autismspeaks.org.

Thank you so much to everyone who has worked hard to make the 7th Annual North/Central NJ Walk a success! Whether you worked on the committee, created a fundraising team or are volunteering on Walk Day, your dedication and hard work are greatly appreciated! Because of you, we are moving closer to finding the missing pieces of the puzzle! We are so proud of all that has been accomplished!

Jennifer Love, North/Central NJ Walk Chair