This morning, I am happy to report, the initial monetary goal of the 27-day $100,000 Kickstarter campaign to save Coney Island’s Mermaid Parade was met. Through small contributions from people around the world, widespread attention from media, celebrities (Alec Baldwin, Darren Aronofsky, etc.), and, well, everybody, there was “a flash flood of support for the 30 year old event.”

Nice.

And why not. Everyone loves the parade and after Hurricane Sandy, there are a lot of extra expenses needed to put on the event. The parade was in jeopardy due to these rising costs. Funding the recovery and the Mermaid Parade has proven to be extremely challenging for the small organization.

“Let’s face it: we’ve had some hard times,” says parade founder Dick Zigun, speaking in Coney Island USA’s damaged headquarters, in the Kickstarter video. “Where I’m standing was up to here in floodwater—our headquarters was totally destroyed…We’re still recovering hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage, and it’s just beyond us. We can’t pull it all off this year.”

To aid the mermaids, the Kickstarter was launched on April 7th. The campaign features rewards that run the gamut from a set of pasties (unisex) designed by contributors to your own private air-conditioned porta potty to a (literal) Freak Flag.

Not surprisingly, Borough President Marty Markowitz is getting in on the act. In support of the grassroots campaign, Marty Markowitz will be offering a unique reward: the top two donators to the Mermaid Parade campaign will get to ride on a special float at the front of the Parade with Marty. That’s right. With Marty. “Anything for the Mermaids!” says Markowitz.

Even though the campaign has met its goal, there are four days to go and you can still add more money to the Mermaid Parade. They need it.