Have you met someone or heard of someone and their story moves you to action?
My school has professionals come and speak to the students about various subjects. The first speaker I ever saw was a woman named Sylvia. She spoke to us about testing for the RPR (that's the professional licensure test). She was very clever and funny and kind.
One of the teachers told me she was having trouble with her hands and couldn't work much anymore. Some kind of accident or something.
Fast forward nearly a year....
On the 18th of February, I went to a professional luncheon to network. There were 58 people at this luncheon, all of them in the court reporting profession in some capacity. I made it my mission to speak to each and every one of them. I had student cards made up and made it known that I was looking for a mentor. Of the 58, about 15 were fellow students. One of my classmates, N, wouldn't get out of her chair. She's shy and was petrified. I had to drag her out of her corner. I told her, "N, you didn't spend $35 to eat salad. At least meet the chairwoman who is handing out mentors!" That's the only person she met.
Anyway, during this lunch, it was made known that Sylvia is in a very bad way. It took a year for a diagnosis. They initially thought she had meningitis but finally concluded it wasn't inflammation of the brain sac but of the brain itself - encephalitis.
She can no longer work. She can barely tie her own shoes. She is nearly completely invalided.
Her sister is a Ph.D. in nursing and is taking care of Sylvia. To make matters worse, they have a brother who is also very disabled and the sister is taking care of him as well. He has a house they are trying to sell (they are all living together at the sister's house) but that's not going well in this market.
They are trying to come up with fundraisers as everyone adores Sylvia because she is such a gentle, kind, helpful person. The issues are these....
In Colorado, you can't hold a raffle or a poker night because you have to be a non-profit for at least three years to hold that kind of easy, money-making fundraiser.
I couldn't get it out of my head. There had to be some way to help her. I talked with my school's director (Sue) and she said she was already planning on having some kind of small fundraiser for Sylvia at the school.
Not enough.
Thinking...... obsessing... busting out the many notebooks to start writing things down.
I hit on it pretty quick.
Why couldn't we have a good old-fashioned garage sale at the school?
School Director was right on board with that! I contacted the woman who was trying to spear-head some sort of fundraiser and she's all excited about it, too.
I'm on the committee at the school to set this in stone. Well, I kind of AM the committee.
Anyway, I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to have a good ol'-fashioned blog contest! It's been well over a year since I've had one.
I'd like to have donations of small knit items that I could sell at the garage sale. I was thinking of making really nice things to sell but with a garage sale, I'm afraid people will show up with that garage sale mentality and not be willing to spend money on that stuff.
I'd like things like....
coffee cozies
small butterflies to put on hair clips (either attach or send unattached and I'll do that part)
flowers that would make cute brooches (or more hair clips!)
I saw someone making these flowers to put in croc's
dishcloth/scrubbie sets
soaps covered in felt
Jewelry (bracelets and such)
stuffies/amigurumis
cozies for electronics/headphones
My school has professionals come and speak to the students about various subjects. The first speaker I ever saw was a woman named Sylvia. She spoke to us about testing for the RPR (that's the professional licensure test). She was very clever and funny and kind.
One of the teachers told me she was having trouble with her hands and couldn't work much anymore. Some kind of accident or something.
Fast forward nearly a year....
On the 18th of February, I went to a professional luncheon to network. There were 58 people at this luncheon, all of them in the court reporting profession in some capacity. I made it my mission to speak to each and every one of them. I had student cards made up and made it known that I was looking for a mentor. Of the 58, about 15 were fellow students. One of my classmates, N, wouldn't get out of her chair. She's shy and was petrified. I had to drag her out of her corner. I told her, "N, you didn't spend $35 to eat salad. At least meet the chairwoman who is handing out mentors!" That's the only person she met.
Anyway, during this lunch, it was made known that Sylvia is in a very bad way. It took a year for a diagnosis. They initially thought she had meningitis but finally concluded it wasn't inflammation of the brain sac but of the brain itself - encephalitis.
She can no longer work. She can barely tie her own shoes. She is nearly completely invalided.
Her sister is a Ph.D. in nursing and is taking care of Sylvia. To make matters worse, they have a brother who is also very disabled and the sister is taking care of him as well. He has a house they are trying to sell (they are all living together at the sister's house) but that's not going well in this market.
They are trying to come up with fundraisers as everyone adores Sylvia because she is such a gentle, kind, helpful person. The issues are these....
In Colorado, you can't hold a raffle or a poker night because you have to be a non-profit for at least three years to hold that kind of easy, money-making fundraiser.
I couldn't get it out of my head. There had to be some way to help her. I talked with my school's director (Sue) and she said she was already planning on having some kind of small fundraiser for Sylvia at the school.
Not enough.
Thinking...... obsessing... busting out the many notebooks to start writing things down.
I hit on it pretty quick.
Why couldn't we have a good old-fashioned garage sale at the school?
School Director was right on board with that! I contacted the woman who was trying to spear-head some sort of fundraiser and she's all excited about it, too.
I'm on the committee at the school to set this in stone. Well, I kind of AM the committee.
Anyway, I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to have a good ol'-fashioned blog contest! It's been well over a year since I've had one.
I'd like to have donations of small knit items that I could sell at the garage sale. I was thinking of making really nice things to sell but with a garage sale, I'm afraid people will show up with that garage sale mentality and not be willing to spend money on that stuff.
I'd like things like....
coffee cozies
small butterflies to put on hair clips (either attach or send unattached and I'll do that part)
flowers that would make cute brooches (or more hair clips!)
I saw someone making these flowers to put in croc's
dishcloth/scrubbie sets
soaps covered in felt
Jewelry (bracelets and such)
stuffies/amigurumis
cozies for electronics/headphones
anything for babies or pets
Sewn items are also welcome!
Things like that. Things I can sell for between $5 and $10 dollars or even for $2. Anything you can or want to make. Most of these can be made with scraps and for nearly all of the things listed, acrylicrap is fine! Anything that doesn't sell at the garage sale, I'll put in my Etsy store and give sale proceeds to Sylvia's Wells Fargo fund.
Contest goes like this...
Send me any of the above items (or similar things you think would sell) - One entry per item sent
Link this contest on any social media of your choice (including your blog, if you have one) and send me a link of your...link. - Bad grammar aside, that'll get you one entry.
Donate cash and send me proof of donation (email it to me or mail me the receipt) - one entry for every $5 donation.
Things like that. Things I can sell for between $5 and $10 dollars or even for $2. Anything you can or want to make. Most of these can be made with scraps and for nearly all of the things listed, acrylicrap is fine! Anything that doesn't sell at the garage sale, I'll put in my Etsy store and give sale proceeds to Sylvia's Wells Fargo fund.
Contest goes like this...
Send me any of the above items (or similar things you think would sell) - One entry per item sent
Link this contest on any social media of your choice (including your blog, if you have one) and send me a link of your...link. - Bad grammar aside, that'll get you one entry.
Donate cash and send me proof of donation (email it to me or mail me the receipt) - one entry for every $5 donation.
(Cash donations go here -
Wells Fargo Bank Bank by Mail
Sylvia Noneff Donation Fund
P.O. Box 3488
Portland, OR 97208
Please write on back: “For
Deposit Only.”)
Wells Fargo Bank Bank by Mail
Sylvia Noneff Donation Fund
P.O. Box 3488
Portland, OR 97208
Please write on back: “For
Deposit Only.”)
The garage sale is on Friday, May 11, 2012. I'll need these items by Monday, May 7, 2012 at the latest so I can get them all cataloged and priced.
If you are sending me items, please send them to my POB:
POB 3832
Parker, CO 80134
And my POB is a 40 minute round trip, so please email me after you've sent so I don't make a trip for no reason - hah!
Prizes:
Obviously, my Stitch Savers will be a prize. I'll give a full set of Basic for one prize.
I'll donate a skein of good sock yarn from my stash.
My friend Skeindalous will also be donating a skein of her luscious sock yarn!
Enjoying my good fortune and my good health, Ruth!
Enjoying my good fortune and my good health, Ruth!
1 comment:
What a stupendous thing to do! Sylvia has found a champion. I'll be sending things your way in a couple weeks.
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