Check out the advance promotion on this upcoming auction.

As I was browsing the web tonite- I came across a very professional auction site for Cal Recreation and Cal Alumini- the fact they have begun to promote these auctions so early, suggests that this type of premarketing works.

Check out the design and layout – not to mention the result of last years auctions- a site like this is a teaser for bidders. Building interest months before the auction starts. .

http://digbig.com/4htwr



Cal Online Auction Beneficiaries:

1. Cal Recreational Sports Development Fund - Benefitting Youth Summer Camp Scholarships for deserving area families and Recreational Sports memberships for UC Berkeley Pell Grant students. Cal Recreational Sports

2. Cal Alumni Association - Funding programs and services that directly support our great public university. Among these are Cal Advocacy, career services, lifelong learning, student services and much more. Cal Alumni Association

We had an email from from Dixie Warner who wants to create a Doctor and Nurse Auction, but is perplexed on what to offer? A day of care? Lunch? 4 hours worth of service? What she wants, is to offer the services of these medical professionals to the community via an auction.

My suggestions Dixie is first to see how many professionals will participate. Then find out what they are willing to provide? Treatments? Consultations? A Home cooked meal? A round of Golf? A day at the office? The use of them is endless, when you really think about it. You could tie it in with the drug companies as well- and we all know how much they support the professionals! You can have fun with this type of auction if you think creatively, beyond the typical- a free office visit, a consultation etc. How many of the community would bid on a round of Golf with a Dr.? Think of the conversations during this type of offering? If the Dr. or Nurse has a hobby- why not tie that in as well.

Any other fundraiser.com readers who wish to contribute- feel free.

Good Luck Dixie- and let us know how it goes.

An update on the Warren Buffett DQ Ukelele story -he signed- we had a few blogs ago.......

This just in. DQ is one of the companies- Buffett's Berkshire Hathway has an interest in.

OMAHA, Neb. -- A custom ukulele autographed by Omaha billionaire Warren Buffett sold for $11,211 Friday on the online auction site eBay.
He will donate all the proceeds from the auction to Children's Hospital in Omaha.
The soprano ukulele is one of two designed to resemble a Dairy Queen ice cream cone.

We have no doubt the 11,211 dollars being given to Children's Hospital in Omaha will make alot of children happy. Not to mention a DQ or two at the same time.!!!!!

Eauctionair.com

Want to give a "shout out" to Michael Donahue and his webbased and pod based auction show - eauctionair. Michael did a nice feature on fundraisers.com and to all the listeners of eauctionair- welcome- browse the site....and let me just say as far as fundraising- the best is yet to come....

Welcome

Came across this interesting charity auction on the wires.

DOHA (Reuters) - The tiny Gulf state of Qatar, famed mainly for having the Arab world's largest reserves of natural gas, added another record to its name Tuesday -- one of the world's most expensive telephone numbers.

At a charity event in the capital of Doha, a Qatari bidder paid $2.75 million for the mobile phone number 666-6666.

The winner, who made the highest bid 10 minutes into the auction, declined requests for interviews. Eight people took part in the auction, organized by Qatar Telecom to help raise funds for charity, paying 3,000 Qatari riyals ($824.60) per ticket.

Funds from the ticket sales were given to a local charity, while the 10 million riyals from the sale of the number will be used to expand medical services.

Interesting # to say the least.

Phone # sells for over 2.5 million to benefit charity!!

Came across this interesting charity auction on the wires.

DOHA (Reuters) - The tiny Gulf state of Qatar, famed mainly for having the Arab world's largest reserves of natural gas, added another record to its name Tuesday -- one of the world's most expensive telephone numbers.

At a charity event in the capital of Doha, a Qatari bidder paid $2.75 million for the mobile phone number 666-6666.

The winner, who made the highest bid 10 minutes into the auction, declined requests for interviews. Eight people took part in the auction, organized by Qatar Telecom to help raise funds for charity, paying 3,000 Qatari riyals ($824.60) per ticket.

Funds from the ticket sales were given to a local charity, while the 10 million riyals from the sale of the number will be used to expand medical services.

Interesting # to say the least.

Got this email from Coca-Cola......very interesting marketing campaign. It is in conjunction with the My Coke Rewards incentive program



From the campaign office of"VOTE KYLE, REWARD VICTORY JUNCTION":You can help Kyle Petty and his new MyCokeRewards #45 Dodge land a spot in the NASCAR NEXTEL All-Star Challenge on May 20. Visit http://l.email-icoke.com/l/r/04xvJlLN0RmP90n2V3 and vote Kyle into this year's All-Star race, and help one of NASCAR's most-beloved drivers raise as much as $1 million for the kids at Victory Junction Gang Camp.

Then, forward this email on to a friend and get them to help one of NASCAR's good guys continue the mission of providing care, comfort and opportunities to these special children from behind the wheel of his new MyCokeRewards car.

Rock Memorabilia being auctioned for Lucky Brands Foundation!!

Been a busy day for blogging- and having picked up the New Rolling Stone 1000th issue special, I find that Rolling Stone and Lucky Brand Jeans are teaming up to bring the world a Music Memorabilia Auction - Live viewings of one-of-a- kind rock memorabilia can be viewed at Bloomingdales, 3rd Ave, NYC (what are west coast folks chopped liver?) and bidding will be on eBay from May 17- May 29th. All proceeds will benefit The Lucky Brands Foundation.

For more info on the auction- http://digbig.com/4hpsf

About the Lucky Brand Foundation:

The Lucky Brand Foundation, created by Lucky Brand Jeans founders Gene Montesano and Barry Perlman, is committed to bringing happiness, comfort and hope to disabled children. The Foundation believes that its donations can truly impact the quality of life and wellbeing of children, and make a difference in their lives. Since its inception in 1996, the Foundation has been successful in raising approximately $6 million through its annual Black Tie & Blue Jeans Gala for numerous children’s charities. The event consistently draws over 700 guests from the fashion and Hollywood industries including; Anthony Edwards, Sela Ward, Emily Procter, Alyson Hannigan, Laura San Giacomo and Neil Young. The Black Tie & Blue Jeans Gala has been hosted by such marquis names as Jay Leno, Dennis Miller, Dana Carvey, Howie Mandel and David Spade. Musical guests have included B.B. King, Jackson Browne, Stephen Stills, Loggins & Messina, James Brown, Chris Isaak and Bonnie Raitt.

MISSION STATEMENT:
The Lucky Brand Foundation is a charitable organization committed to bringing happiness, comfort and hope to disadvantaged and disabled children. Donations made by the Foundation are designated for the immediate and specific needs of the selected charity or for the purchase of specific items on behalf of the charity, and may not be used in any part for administrative costs.


(BTW- Point of Information- you may want to pickup a couple copies of the Sgt Pepper like Rolling Stone 1000th issue - (5.95) as copies of the publication are now on eBay for 13.00)

Solicitation Results

Since I am the silent auction chairperson for Cabrito Foundation- I found myself sending out many requests to my colleagues for silent auction, raffle prizes and live auction prizes. It is truly amazing to me the openess of many corporations in providing goods for us to use.

On the other hand- we got a sorry, we can't help you out- as we don't want to set a precedent from a billion dollar consumer oriented service company. I shook my head on that one, as I had never heard that excuse, and quite frankly for a second was taken aback.

For the record- we received gift baskets, DVD sets, and other items to benefit the Men of Cabrito House in Canoga Park.

I want to throw this question out there for fundraisers.com readers. As chairperson of the silent auction- we are setting minimum bids on specific items. If the item gets no bid- should we lower the starting bid? or should we put the item up on eBay, and give the proceeds to Cabrito Foundation. If you were attending the event- would you feel offended? Let me know as it will help with my decision. richard@fundraisers.com

For more info on Cabrito Foundation and our upcoming Golf Tournament & Barbecue- check out
http://www.cabritohouse.org/

eBay auctions eBay CEO to Benefit Lukemia & Lymphoma Society

Just came across this eBay auction - Win Lunch with Bill Cobb President of eBay North America to benefit the Silicon Valley and Monterey Chapter of the Lukemia & Lymphoma Society.....

Know of someone who wished they could chat with an executive that’s been a part of multiple Fortune 500 companies in a power lunch situation? This is the chance they’ve been waiting for. Bill is the President of eBay North America and oversees the marketing, strategic planning, and business development for all of eBay's North American businesses. Bill earned his MBA at the Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, so this lunch hour event is the “best gift you can’t wrap” for the prospective MBA student or up-and-coming high tech executive.

With 4 days left- the bid was up to 1,225.00. To review the auction- http://digbig.com/4hprs

Remember if you want us to talk about your auctions- you have to contact us. If I hadn't been surfing eBay, I would not have been able to publicize it to our readers.

Celebrity Signed Phones being auctioned to benefit Violence Victims

BEDMINSTER, NJ – Hurry to the keyboard! There are only 4 days left to bid on autographed phones from Donald Trump, Dr. Phil, Krissy Wendell and more in the HopeLine® Online Phone Auction.

Through early next Tuesday, anyone can bid on celebrity-autographed phones during the second HopeLine Online Phone Auction. Verizon Wireless will donate all proceeds from the auction to Safe Horizon, the leading provider of services for victims of violence in New York City. Safe Horizon has been at the forefront of helping victims of crime and abuse for over a quarter of a century and moves more than 350,000 victims from crisis to confidence each year by offering a chance to tell their story in their own words, a guide through the criminal justice system or a safe place to sleep.

Participants in the HopeLine auction can bid to purchase phones signed by:

Donald Trump, chairman and president, The Trump Organization
Dr. Phil McGraw, host of the Dr. Phil Show
Misty May, beach volleyball world champion
Clark Haggans, linebacker for the world champion Pittsburgh Steelers
Krissy Wendell, captain of the U.S. women's hockey team
Kelly Clark, snowboarder

To bid on the signed phones, customers simply log on to www.verizonwireless.com/hopeline, and click on the 'Phone Auction' banner to be taken to the 'HopeLine Online Phone Auction' site, which is being conducted on eBay. The winning bidders will sport one of the hottest new phones:

Motorola RAZR V3c -- Equipped with access to Verizon Wireless’ V CAST multimedia service, the Motorola RAZR V3c seamlessly unites fashion and technology to provide the ultimate multimedia experience with a must-have product. The Motorola RAZR V3c retails for $79.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and two-year customer agreement.

LG VX8100 -- With EV-DO technology for access to V CAST Music and dual speakers for stereo sounds, the LG VX8100 is the ultimate in high speed, high tech and high style. The LG VX8100 retails for $69.99 after $50 mail-in rebate with two-year customer agreement.

Samsung SCH-a950 -- The Samsung SCH-a950 is loaded with features, including access to V CAST Music. The a950’s intuitive design and external music controls give users complete control of their mobile entertainment experience. The Samsung SCH-a950 retails for $149.99 after $50 mail-in rebate with two-year customer agreement.

Motorola E815 -- Delivering access to Verizon Wireless’ hot V CAST wireless broadband multimedia service and a host of other cutting-edge features, the Motorola E815 is the perfect phone for the customer who loves to stay on the forefront of new technologies. The Motorola E815 retails for $49.99 after a $50 mail-in rebate and two-year customer agreement.
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Once again, major corporations are doing their part to benefit causes, and we applaud Verizon for being a leader in their industry for causes that affect us all.

Cancer Victim uses eBay to raise treatment funds!!!

GoldenPalace.com is at it again- this time for a good cause.


ST. AUGUSTINE, FL (AP) -- The artwork of a seven-year-old boy raising money for his cancer treatments is the latest unconventional eBay purchase by an Internet casino.Goldenpalace-dot-com paid more than 28-hundred dollars for the water colors.It's previous buys included William Shatner's kidney stone and a grilled cheese sandwich with the image of the Virgin Mary.Maddox Johnson started auctioning his watercolors to help his parents pay for the cancer treatments.Goldenpalace-dot-com is known for its unique and sometimes outlandish buys.A Goldenpalace-dot-com spokesman said the Antigua-based company is always looking for items to help branding. He said the paintingswill be framed and hung in an office.

Rodney Dangerfield, during an interview once told me, to be a success in entertainment or any business you have to have a schtick. Goldenpalace.com surely does.

Warren Buffett and DQ team up for Charity Auction!!!

Warren Buffett and Dairy Queen are teaming up to offer a personally played and autographed Dairy Queen Ukelele on eBay beginning May 15. Inspired by Mr. Buffett's love for the Ukelele this eBay 10 day auction will benefit Omaha Children's Hospital, a member of the Children's Miracle Network. The auction will begin May 15.

The DQ® Ukulele was designed by Tesser, a branding and design firm from San Francisco, California, and handcrafted by renowned luthier David Talsma, of Swartz Creek, Michigan. This is a limited edition #1 of 2. Mr. Buffett will keep the second Ukelele for himself.

About Children's Miracle Network: Children's Miracle Network, the alliance of premier hospitals for children, is a non-profit organization dedicated to saving and improving the lives of children by raising funds for children's hospitals across North America. Each year the 170 Children's Miracle Network hospitals provide the finest medical care, life-saving research and preventative education to help millions of kids overcome diseases and injuries of every kind. To learn more go to cmn.org.

About the Omaha Children's Hospital: Children's Hospital is a non-profit organization and serves as the primary inpatient teaching site for the joint Creighton University/University of Nebraska pediatric residency program. Children's also serves as the pediatric training site for the family practice residency programs at the University of Nebraska Medical Center, Creighton University Medical Center and the University of Nebraska, and for many of the region’s nursing and healthy professions schools. To learn more about Children's Hospital in Omaha, go to chsomaha.org.

the above info came from: http://digbig.com/4hkqm

Wow!!!!!- LONDON (AFP) - The stunning off-the-shoulder dress worn by British film star Keira Knightley at this year's
A bidder from Chicago won the deep-claret Vera Wang taffeta silk gown with a bid of 4,301 pounds (7,860 dollars, 6,230 euros).
Knightley, 21, wore the dress at the glitzy
Oscar Gown at the recent ceremony in Los Angeles in March. She was nominated for best actress for her starring role in "Pride and Prejudice".
"It's brilliant that this dress has raised this much," Knightley said.
"I know it will go a long way to help the people facing this food crisis in East Africa."
An estimated 11 million people are facing starvation in a drought that has decimated nomadic herding communities.
The proceeds of the auction will provide enough food to feed 5,000 children for a month in Tanzania.
Oxfam's director for East Africa, Paul Smith-Lomas, said: "The situation in East Africa is still very serious, and recent rains have made it worse, raising the threat of diseases like cholera and making access to affected areas extremely difficult.
"The money Keira's dress has raised will make a vital contribution to Oxfam's work.
"Money raised from the East Africa appeal will support both emergency food and water relief and also long-term projects which will help people rebuild their lives once the immediate crisis has passed."

Congratulations to all involved. This is how its supposed to be done.