From today's TIMES and NEWS-STAR
You
know those auctions you go to now and then as part of a fundraiser? Ever wonder
how all that stuff gets there?
It’s
harder than it looks. I’ve gathered stuff to be auctioned off, and there’s
always a catch, somehow and some way. A nice print of a famous athlete or actor
isn’t that hard to present; but getting it autographed, for instance, is a bit
of a different story.
But
from my experience, these things almost always end up being worth it. Those who
donate items often go beyond what is necessary and bidders have a shot at
something they wouldn’t ordinarily be able to acquire, not at any reasonable
price or without a whole lot of trouble.
And
the organization makes money! Everybody’s happy. The classic win-win and win
again.
So
tip of the hat to all the Item Gatherers, whether the fundraiser be for your
school, church or non-profit organization. You are cut from the same cloth as
the people who rake the Little League fields, bake the recreation hall cookies
and host the Cub Scout meetings.
What
has grown to become perhaps the area’s largest silent auction fundraiser is
Thursday night (March 5) at East Ridge Country Club in Shreveport. It’s the
annual Fellowship of Christian Athletes Dinner/Auction, and without a doubt the
haul up for bids is the most impressive in the event’s history.
(If
you wish to go, just bring ten dollars to get in and then show up. No
reservation necessary. If your body is there, your wallet and your
willing-to-help attitude, you will not in any way leave hungry or bored.)
As
a teaser, only three or four of the following items will be available for your
bidding pleasure at Thursday’s night’s big FCA Bash. (You have to guess):
A)
The jawbone of an ass
B)
A copy of Joshua, unabridged, signed by the
author
C)
A Moses beard brush
D)
An Emmitt Smith authentic Dallas Cowboys
helmet
E)
A Dead Sea Scroll
F)
Sunday dinner for a year
G)
A Dead Sea fish, alive
H)
Selected Psalms, sung by the original authors
(available on 8-track only)
I)
Northwestern
State “Basketball Experience” for Two and Louisiana Tech “Football Experience”
for Two
J)
Fishes
and Loaves basket (Feeds 5,000)
K)
A Philistine
L)
A fatted calf
M)
LSU
Football Tiger Stadium End Zone Suite to a 2015 game
N)
Selected unleavened breads
Our
old friend Terry Slack, Northwest Louisiana and State Director for FCA, has
been at his job a while and learned long ago to start gathering stuff for the
next year as soon as this year’s auction was set. It’s sort of a perpetual
trudging up Mt. Saini, to use an old-school term. But because of it, the
organization gets the support it needs for year-round visits to schools to form
and feed FCA chapters and host camps.
The
toughest item for him to get this year was the signed helmets, cards and photos
by former LSU and NFL star Y.A. Tittle. The still-popular native East Texas is
in declining health and in California now, but the diligent T. Slack mailed all
sorts of things westward, made calls to several secretaries, and a month later,
it all came back, autographed – including one of the most recognizable athletic
photographs ever: Tittle, helmetless and bloodied, on his knees on the turf in
Yankee Stadium.
Slack
went through Dallas connections to get a print of Odell Beckham Jr.’s “Greatest
Catch Ever,” and Kelly Wells with the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission put
together an Adventure Adrenaline Package, the trifecta of a sky dive, fly board
ride and dragster ride.
There’s
even a North Caddo High cafeteria tray signed by Phil, Kay and Si Robertson.
Imagine how you could impress your friends by serving a roasted duck on it.
“The
trips and experiences were hard to put together,” Slack said, “but we are
blessed by knowing Mike and Tommy,” referring to NSU hoops coach Mike McConathy
and Louisiana Tech director of athletics Tommy McClelland. Mike was a star at
Tech and Tommy played at NSU; now the foot is on the other shoe. But although a
guy can switch schools professionally, everyone is on the same team when it
comes to FCA.
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