Gordon Lightfoot Forums - View Single Post - Survivors and Friends-Bill Hall

johnfowles · 03-14-2006, 12:26 PM

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Peter Alicea:
Hi Folks,
Last night (Saturday,March 11) we had our benefit show to raise money for a local chapter of the Survivors and Friends Cancer group. QUOTE]

Thanks for the briliant reporting on what seems to have been an awesome event
All this talk aboat cancer fund raising brought back happy memories of the many years I served as the "honorary" (oh do shut up Sydney hooligan person) ^Treasurer of my local branch of the UK's Cancer Research Campaign.(at the time there were, inexplicably two such organisations in the UK the other being the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. (These two later merged). I originally got involved after attending a CRC Wine Tasting with my then girlfriend that was organised by her parents and wishing to impress her I volunteered to join their committee. When her stepfather had to step down as chairman I took over as treasurer from her mother.
(Nevertheless the impression was not successful and Fran and her Australian husband now run a guest house on the Victorian shore).
Our CRC Comittee raised around £2000 a year, mostly from the annual "flag-day" collections.and we were always on the look out for new events to put on.One that we used to thoroughly enjoy and reaped in regularly large amounts from was an "Auction of Promises" and in case this is something Peter's sister and organising partner are unaware of I will describe it in general detail.
We booked a hall capable of seating say 600 people and then contacted local people and businesses we knew (or thought) might be generous requesting the donation of items that we could auction.
Typically this included restaurant dinner vouchers. the occasional plesasure sight-seeing flight if we found anybody owning an aeroplane, cakes, vacation vouchers , a thorough plumbing or heating service and usually a local farmer could be persuaded to donate a ton of "well-rotted manure"!!
In fact just aboat anything is suitable including

the proverbial kitchen fitment!!
We would then engage the free services of a local auctioneer (not necessarily from Arkansas) and after providing refreshments let the bidding begin (ideally on say 100 lots).
I thoroughly recommend this fund-raising event and, Peter, should your sister need any further details I will put on my thinking cap (it is now the best part of seven years since I was last involved in one.
John Fowles
I did a google and found a nice description of one such UK auction in the Wiltshire town of Bradford on Avon

at:-
http://www.lamaction.org/news/auction.htm
held by LAM ?wotisdat?
(LAM Action is the UK charity for patients and families with Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (also known as LAM) and doctors caring for patients with LAM. so now you know)
and here is another

[ March 14, 2006, 11:35: Message edited by: johnfowles ]

03-14-2006, 12:26 PM	#38
johnfowles Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: New Jersey U.S.A. ex UK and Canada Posts: 4,846	[QUOTE]Originally posted by Peter Alicea: Hi Folks, Last night (Saturday,March 11) we had our benefit show to raise money for a local chapter of the Survivors and Friends Cancer group. QUOTE] Thanks for the briliant reporting on what seems to have been an awesome event All this talk aboat cancer fund raising brought back happy memories of the many years I served as the "honorary" (oh do shut up Sydney hooligan person) ^Treasurer of my local branch of the UK's Cancer Research Campaign.(at the time there were, inexplicably two such organisations in the UK the other being the Imperial Cancer Research Fund. (These two later merged). I originally got involved after attending a CRC Wine Tasting with my then girlfriend that was organised by her parents and wishing to impress her I volunteered to join their committee. When her stepfather had to step down as chairman I took over as treasurer from her mother. (Nevertheless the impression was not successful and Fran and her Australian husband now run a guest house on the Victorian shore). Our CRC Comittee raised around £2000 a year, mostly from the annual "flag-day" collections.and we were always on the look out for new events to put on.One that we used to thoroughly enjoy and reaped in regularly large amounts from was an "Auction of Promises" and in case this is something Peter's sister and organising partner are unaware of I will describe it in general detail. We booked a hall capable of seating say 600 people and then contacted local people and businesses we knew (or thought) might be generous requesting the donation of items that we could auction. Typically this included restaurant dinner vouchers. the occasional plesasure sight-seeing flight if we found anybody owning an aeroplane, cakes, vacation vouchers , a thorough plumbing or heating service and usually a local farmer could be persuaded to donate a ton of "well-rotted manure"!! In fact just aboat anything is suitable including the proverbial kitchen fitment!! We would then engage the free services of a local auctioneer (not necessarily from Arkansas) and after providing refreshments let the bidding begin (ideally on say 100 lots). I thoroughly recommend this fund-raising event and, Peter, should your sister need any further details I will put on my thinking cap (it is now the best part of seven years since I was last involved in one. John Fowles I did a google and found a nice description of one such UK auction in the Wiltshire town of Bradford on Avon at:- http://www.lamaction.org/news/auction.htm held by LAM ?wotisdat? (LAM Action is the UK charity for patients and families with Lymphangioleiomyomatosis (also known as LAM) and doctors caring for patients with LAM. so now you know) and here is another [ March 14, 2006, 11:35: Message edited by: johnfowles ]