Back on November 15 (and many times since then!), I told you about this year’s Passports with Purpose fundraiser, and encouraged you to bid on Dog Jaunt’s prize: A two-night stay and dinner at any Kimpton hotel. The fundraiser ended on December 13, and the winners of all the prizes were announced this past Friday. That means that if you, like me, did not get a congratulatory e-mail message, you did not, in fact, win the prize or prizes you bid on. Sigh. On the bright side — and it’s very bright indeed — the fundraiser was a smash success, blasting past the organizers’ goal of $50,000 to raise a total of $58,132. Thanks to you, twenty-five Dalit (“untouchable”) families are building themselves a village of sturdy brick homes in Southern India. “Yelam Seyalkoodum!” (that’s Tamil for “Together everything is possible!”)

I am so grateful to the Kimpton Group for their generosity. It was a delight to be able to offer you such a wonderful prize. Janet, the winner, says she’ll likely use her vouchers to visit one of the Kimpton hotels in the San Francisco Bay Area. Congratulations to her, and thank you to everyone who bid on the Kimpton prize!