Make sure you don't use any spaces in your name or password.

Absolutely! Walkers are encouraged to raise funds and work hard to achive their fundraising goal.

Once you register online you can use the online fundraising system to send your friends and family a link to your personal fundraising page. There, they can give to you securely online by credit card. Alternately, you can download a pledge form, print it out and ask people face-to-face for support. For more information on raising money, visit the Tools area.

Keep them safe till WALK day - that's when you will present them with your pledge sheet during check-in.

Deposit the cheque in your bank account, then bring cash on WALK day, making sure you've recorded the donor name on your pledge sheet or online using the fundraising system. You can also pay the donation online with your own credit card in the name of the donor who gave you the cheque.

All post-WALK cheques can be mailed directly to 260-659 King St. East, Kitchener, ON, Canada, N2G 2M4

No, donations of cash and cheques of less than $20 are not receipted in order to minimize event-processing expenses. However, all online credit card donations are receipted regardless of amount.

Online donors who give securely with their credit cards get e-receipts within minutes of their donations. Donors who give cheques or cash are receipted within 60 days of the event by regular post (for donations of $20 or more).

Sign in to your personal fundraising page. Click Manage Cash or Cheques in the side column, and then carefully type in the details of your donors' gifts or pledges (including their email address if you have it).

Note: No donor is ever contacted or solicited by the WALK, other than during the acknowledgement of their online donation, or when we mail them their receipt after the event.

Yes, all walkers must sign the waiver during check-in. Walkers 17 and under require the signature of a legal guardian (parent, teacher, youth leader, guardian).

The waiver form means you understand the risk of walking in the event, that in the event of injury you release the event, the volunteers and the operators of the event from any liability and, should your picture be taken on WALK day, you release the WALK to appropriately use your likeness in any future publications around the WALK. Consult your own legal counsel for additional input should you have any questions.

The WALK routes open at 5 pm and all walkers must be away by 6 pm.

Check-in for ALL walkers opens at 4 pm and closes at 6 pm. Walkers should have their pledge forms and any cash and cheques filled out and ready to go when they arrive.

To find your WALK's location, choose the city you are walking in from the Locations menu – everything you need is there, including start-finish location, address, map, contact numbers, emails, route descriptions, and most other location-specific details.

There are 5 km and 10 km routes available.

Depending on your fitness, the weather, congestion and ground cover, most walkers clip along at between 4-5 km/hour. So the shorter walk should take 60-90 minutes and the longer walk around 2-3 hours.

Yes, there will be rest stations along your route - check your location page for more details.

You normally would at least begin the WALK with your team, but depending on fitness levels and pace, you may end up spreading out along the route during the WALK.

We expect cold temperatures and precipitation. Watch the weather online prior to the walk carefully. Layers of clothing are good since you will certainly warm up during a long walk. Gloves, a warm ear-covering hat, glasses even for wind protection and a water/snow repellent jacket (preferably with a hood) are all good choices.

Footwear is really important. If there is snow or rain you need to have water-proof boots or shoes. Gloves and a scarf are a good idea also. After all, it is a February WALK in Canada...

WALK officials will monitor temperatures during the week leading up to the walk. If the temperature is becomes extremely cold - so much so that the safety of our walkers is in question - we may shorten or suspend the walk to safeguard their well-being.

Enter all of the donor information online in your personal fundraising page under "Manage Cash and Cheques" (you can print that whole list out and bring with you on WALK day too!). Bring all cash and cheques made payable to Coldest Night of the Year with you. They will be processed with you at check-in.

Although we appreciate your dog's eagerness to support the WALK, we would ask that Fido sit this one out. There will be a variety of children and adults who might be nervous around dogs (even friendly ones!) and we want to make sure every participant can complete the WALK comfortably. The exception to the rule would be service dogs, of course.

Definitely! Once you've recorded your cash donations online, you can pay them through our website with your personal credit card to avoid lugging an envelope filled with cash around. Sign-in to your personal fundraising page and click on "Manage Cash or Cheques". Scroll down to your list of pledges and click on the pledges you wish to pay, then click 'pay'. This will take you to a payment gateway to complete the transaction.

If you'd like to pay with personal cheque, be sure to enter your cash pledges online and then total your cash donations. Write out your cheque to "Coldest Night of the Year" and mark your name on the memo line. Bring this with you on WALK day with your completed list of pledges, and you're all set.

There is no registration fee for teams as a whole, but instead it works on an individual basis, and the fee is waived after a certain amount is raised by each participant.

If you are 18+ years of age and raise less than $150, the registration fee is $25.

If you are 10-17 years of age, and you raise less than $75, the registration fee is again $25.

If you are under 10 years of age, the registration fee is waived.

On average, walkers raise about $250 each, and most donors give around $40-$50, so it's a reachable goal!

Email us at info@coldestnightoftheyear.org and we'll take care of it for you.

Note: if you have collected cash or cheque pledges, please ensure that all donor names and addresses are carefully posted online in your fundraising centre. Don't send cash in the mail. Pay for cash with a personal cheque from you (or pay by credit online). Send all cheques with your pledge sheet (if applicable) to Blue Sea Philanthropy, 260-659 King St. East, Kitchener, ON, N2G 2M4, Attn: Coldest Night of the Year

The short answer is: yes. It would help us get a better handle on how many WALKers to expect on WALK Day if you could create a separate registration profile for each family member. You could route them all to the same email address or even post all donations under one family member's name for efficiency's sake, but each person should have their own profile.

For children under the age of 10, the registration fee of $25 is waived. For children aged 10-17, the $25 registration fee applies if they raise less than $75. As each donor gives $40-50 on average, this is definitely doable. Ask grandma and grandpa, teachers, neighbours - one dedicated evening of fundraising should do the trick.

First of all, don't hit "reply" to that notification email - that just goes to us. (We might giggle at you.) To thank your donors, you can log in to your personal page, click on "Fundraising", then click on "Thank and Manage Sponsors". Click on the envelope graphic next to your donor's name to send them a quick thank-you note. It's good etiquette (your Grandmother would be proud!), and a great way to connect with your donors on a personal level.

No - the $25 registration fee (which is required for adults over the age of 18 who raised less than $150, or youth aged 10-17 who raised less than $75) is NOT tax-deductible.

When you click the "Login" button on our main page, there is a "Forgot Password?" button to the right of the username and password fields. Click this to be taken to a password reset area, or click here.