Send Eliot's OM Teams to Iowa!

ELIOT BOBCATS QUALIFY FOR WORLD FINALS!
In our first year of competing in the Odyssey of the Mind creative problem solving competition, 3 teams from Eliot Elementaryin Tulsa, Oklahoma won 1st Place in their divisions at the State tournament to earn a place at the OM World Finals! The OM World Finals take place at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa on May 25-28. More than 800 teams from all over the U.S. and from 25 countries around the world will compete.

While it was incredibly exciting to qualify for the OM World Finals in early April, we also realized that we had to quickly come up with the funds it will take to get 17 students and their accompanying parents and teacher to Iowa. We are asking for your help in raising funds to make this trip possible for all team members who can participate.
COSTS
The lodging and meal plan is $575 per person for the 4-night World Finals. We also have to pay the gas and meal costs for traveling to and from Iowa, a 500-mile trip one way. Families have pledged some funds toward the trip already and we are doing additional fundraising such as a garage sale, selling concessions at a school event, and selling Free Dress passes at Eliot. All the money raised will go toward costs for this trip to Iowa.

We thank you for anything you can give!

If you would rather send a check donation (which is not charged the online credit card fee) please make it payable to: Eliot Elementary Foundation.
Write "Odyssey of the Mind" on the memo line.
Mail it to:
Odyssey of the Mind
Eliot Elementary School
1442 East 36th Street
Tulsa, OK 74105

Offline donations such as these will be acknowledged online and added to our fundraising total.
WHAT THIS MEANS TO OUR KIDS
These highly motivated students have worked incredibly hard on their team problems for the past several months and have achieved quite a lot in a short time. Odyssey of the Mind requires that the students do the vast majority of the work themselves. This has meant making costumes, building projects and props, writing scripts and songs, and performing in front of a crowd. We are so proud of what they have accomplished, and they are very excited about the opportunity to attend this prestigious event.

While at the WorldFinals, they will have the opportunity to interact with other students from all over the U.S. and from around the world. They will participate in an Olympic-style Opening Ceremony. In addition to their problem competition, they will be able to experience Creative Challenge booths and NASA will have two exciting educational opportunities on site. The kids will have special Oklahoma Odyssey of the Mind pins that they can trade for pins from other states and around the world. It's truly a one-of-a-kind experience.
Thanks to Eliot Elementary Principal Sharon Holt for her support of the OM Program.

Thanks to Eliot teacher Lisa Rutledge for organizing the Odyssey of the Mind program for the students this year.

Thanks to the dedicated parents who coached teams and helped make this all happen.

And extra special thanks to the Eliot Elementary Foundation for managing this fundraising campaign!

WHAT IS ODYSSEY OF THE MIND?
Odyssey of the Mind is an international educational program that provides creative problem-solving opportunities for students from kindergarten through college. Team members apply their creativity to solve problems that range from building mechanical devices to presenting their own interpretation of literary classics. They then bring their solutions to competition on the local, state, and World level. Thousands of teams from throughout the U.S. and from about 25 other countries participate in the program during the year.

Learn More About Odyssey of the Mind

This campaign has been set up on GoFundMe by the Eliot Elementary Foundation on behalf of the Eliot Elementary sudents and their families who will be making the trip to the Odyssey of the Mind World Finals in Iowa.  The Eliot Elementary Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable foundation and, therefore, your donation is tax deductible.