Your questions about the Tomato Nation/DonorsChoose.org Spring 2012 Contest, answered. (I hope.) Updated June 3, 1:30 PM.

WHATCHA DOIN’?
Welcome to the Tomato Nation/Donors Choose Spring Contest 2012: Red Ops. Want to donate right now? Click right here. 

Keep an eye on the homepage for daily updates and tallies, or follow me on Twitter, @TomatoNation. The hashtag is #RedOps.

THE LOGISTICS
Starting on May 21, we’ll tackle one high-need city per day. The list is below, in alpha/tackle order:

• Albuquerque, NM
• Brownsville, TX
• Buffalo, NY
• Camden, NJ
• Columbia, SC
• The Dakotas
• Detroit, MI
• Joplin, MO
• Northridge/Dayton, OH
• West Virginia’s northern panhandle

The city will change over automatically each day, but the URL is always the same: this baby right here.

Over two weeks, we raised more than $37,000 in 10 communities across the country. Great job, strike force.

HOW DO I ENTER?
When you donate, you’ll get a receipt; forward it to bunting at tomatonation dot com. If you donate more than once, forward allll your receipts; we have general prizes, AND we have daily prizes, so just forward that receipt eeeeevery time. You’ll get an automated email from me notifying you that you’ve been entered.

Again, the daily updates will tell you what to do in more detail; if you have questions, leave a comment, or email me.

THE MATCHES
We’ve got a bunch of matching funds coming too — from DonorsChoose.org, and from wonderful benefactors among the readership, too! Watch this space for information and match codes, and make your money work even harder! (And don’t forget to ask at work about whether your company will match charitable donations.)

I’M BROKE, YO. CAN I HELP SOME OTHER WAY?
Sure! You can donate a prize if you’d like; you can Facebook/Tweet/email your friends, relatives, strangers, and enemies about the contest. And remember, even a buck or two counts; especially on match days, that $1.52 you dug out from the backseat of the car could turn into $3.04!

But if it’s all going to your damn student loan, I get it. Spreading the word really helps too, and it’s free.

THE PRIZES
a $100 Apple gift card

a baby blanket and a kids’/lap blanket, hand-knitted by (Molly M.)

a brand-new Kindle touch (Stacey S.)

1 $25 DonorsChoose.org gift code (Vanessa Y.)

a knitted pillow and a batch of 3 cat toys (Sara T.)

a hand-knitted hat, winner’s choice of pattern or color (Judy P.)

Up to 6 hours of graphic-design work for business cards, a logo, et al. (Linda G.)

a $15 iTunes gift card (Amanda Mysteriosa)

a signed, bound ms. of the shiny new novel from Pamela Ribon, You Take It From Here (Pamie)

a framed 5×7 quilled initial, letter and color scheme of the winner’s choice, a la zees photo (Julia C.)

2 $50 Amazon gift cards (Joan S.)

2 individual titles OR 1 boxed set from this Library of America list (Laura G.)

$100 worth of travel-planning services from TrekSetter (Beth W.)

This bird print from The Flashbulb (Stephanie F.)

a crocheted dragon in the winner’s choice of color (Katherine B.)

any monster (hee) from Rebecca Danger’s Big Book of Knitted Monsters (Melina M.)

a coupon code good for 100 business cards + free shipping at Moo.com (Jane V.)

a CT RollerGirls prize pack, including 4 ticket vouchers (good for the rest of the 2012 season), a black league t-shirt (winner chooses size, subject to availability), and some other little swag (buttons, stickers, beverage koozies) (Amie A.)

2 sea-glass necklaces (Ellen B.)

another $15 iTunes gift card! (Lisa G.)

a $50 gift card from the Think Geek website (Michelle R.)

a $50 Amazon gift card (Tiffany L.)

2 $50 gift cards to Zappos, 1 $50 gift card to Old Navy, and 1 $50 gift card to Best Buy (Marie T.)

2 $50 Marriott Cards, 4 $25 Gap Options Cards, and 2 $50 PF Chang’s cards (Anonyma)

an iPod shuffle (Jen)

I’d love even more prizes, and there’s still time to join the prize pool. Email me at bunting at tomatonation dot com to pitch in. Gift cards and certificates particularly appreciated.

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