Our first Auction item (see details below)
3/4 life-size, bronze, titled “The Gift of Water”
Our current totals stand at $42,075 from 170 supporters. At this time last year we had raised $66,542 from 214 supporters so we are a little behind schedule- on both totals. However, things can change quickly. Currently every donation is being doubled till we reach $45,435.
Last night we got this inspiring message from James Robert Deal – a fluoride-fighting lawyer from Washington State. He wrote,
“FAN has initiated litigation. FAN has given this movement credibility. FAN has done great work. I am donating to FAN this year. I encourage all to give generously.”
And he has pledged to extend the doubling challenge by another $250 – with that, every donation will be doubled until we reach $45,685. Thank you James!
Meanwhile, here is another exciting challenge – one of our most loyal supporters has pledged to donate $2,000 if we can reach $50,000 by this Friday at midnight (EDT).
For those of us of more humble means, please don’t be put off by these big numbers. Every donation is important to us. Every donation makes you part of the FAN team and adds to the total number of supporters, which is a huge help in attracting foundation support.
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You can make a donation at our secure online server, or by check, payable to Fluoride Action Network, and mail to:
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“The Gift of Water”
During the last week of December–and of our 2017 fundraiser–FAN will be streaming a Live FUN-raising Auction, broadcast over our Facebook and Twitter pages. Supporters will be able to make bids by phone and email on items that are donated between now and the auction.
The tentative date for this event is Wednesday, December 27th, but we will provide additional updates as we move closer to the auction. We will also be publishing a page on our website where supporters can view photos of the auction items and start bidding via email, using a silent auction format. As the bids come in, we plan to post them on the webpage. The highest emailed bid for each item is where we will start during the live-stream event.
An amazing artist, Donna Mayne from Ontario, Canada, has donated the first auction item, and it is truly breathtaking.
“Thank you FAN for your dedicated work as safe-water advocates. You were instrumental to our campaign here in Windsor, Ontario when we successfully stopped artificial fluoridation in 2013.
Inspired by this campaign and all the research and knowledge we gleaned from it, I created a series of 3/4 life-size, bronze sculptures titled, “The Gift of Water.”
Each Figure acts as a steward of this precious life source, extending a hand or toes to test it.”
This sculpture is the first casting from a limited edition of only five. It took Donna 6 months to create the clay figure and another 4 months for the foundry to cast her bronze using the labour intensive lost wax method. She was specifically created for a waterside environment but would be very suitable for any garden setting.
This sculpture is currently on display in Michigan, and was awarded “Best in Show” at the 2015 Sioux Falls Avera McKennan Hospital exhibition where it was originally listed at $19,500.
We plan to start the bidding at $12,000, almost half the selling price. Anything we raise above $9,600 USD (the foundry, brokerage, and shipping fees) will be donated to FAN.
If you want to learn more about the sculpture or the artist, you can visit Donna’s website: https://www.donnajeanmayne.
We also hope that this inspires all of you to look around your home and business for an item (of any value) that you would like to donate to our live auction. All we ask is that you send a photo and description of the item, as well as a suggested starting bid, to Ellen Connett ( ellen@fluoridealert.org ) so it can be posted on the auction webpage as soon as possible. Donors will be responsible for shipping the item to the auction winner at the completion of the fundraiser.
PS: The newsletter is a little late as I had to snowblow about 16 inches of new snow so my wife could get to work and my kids to school this morning. I have a long driveway, and despite the town plow blocking the driveway back in twice, I wasn’t going to let a little snow slow down this important fundraiser. Thanks for your patience and continued support!
Thank You,
Stuart Cooper
Campaign Director
Fluoride Action Network