Rappel down The Graduate Ann Arbor for a good cause in July

‘Over the Edge’ fundraiser returns to city

Raise funds to rappel down The Graduate Ann Arbor in July. (Friends In Deed)

ANN ARBOR – Get an adrenaline fix while raising money to end poverty in Washtenaw County as part of the third “Over The Edge” event.

Organized by Ypsilanti-based social services nonprofit Friends In Deed, proceeds from the event will provide local families with emergency support services.

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Registration is now open for the event on July 30 where thrill-seekers can rappel 14 stories down the side of The Graduate Ann Arbor hotel.

The nonprofit’s goal is to raise $150,000 of emergency assistance funding to provide free car repair and transporation, furniture, cribs and beds and to prevent utility shut-offs.

“It has been a tough couple of years for families living on the edge, and Friends In Deed has been here to help when other agencies can’t,” Friends In Deed Executive Director Sarah Thornburg said in a statement. “We are so excited to welcome our supporters back to The Graduate to raise funds to help their neighbors in need.”

Participants go "Over the Edge" of the Graduate Ann Arbor hotel in a fundraiser for Friends in Deed on September 4, 2020. (Austin Thomason)

“I’ve been involved with Friends In Deed for a few years now,” author and sports journalist John U Bacon said in a statement. “It’s a fantastic organization and it helps more people than you could possibly imagine.”

Corporate sponsorships and underwriting opportunities are also available at this time. Individual rappelers must commit to raising $1,000 and teams of six must commit to raising $5,000 to participate.

“This event has to be seen to be believed,” President Emeritus of the University of Michigan Musical Society Ken Fischer said in a statement. “Not only will it allow our participants to have an experience of a lifetime, but it will prevent one-time emergencies from upending the lives of the many families living in poverty in our county.”

To register and to learn more about the event, visit www.friendsindeedmi.org/OTE.