Saturday, August 26, 2006

"hello chile" benefit a success


Sunday, August 13th at the Empty Bottle in Chicago we hosted Hello Chile to raise funds and collect photography equipment for Voluntarios de la Esperanza (VE). Well over 100 people attended the show which included live music, a local artist print sale, and a raffle. Thanks to everyone who came and helped with the event, we raised just over $1000 for VE. All proceeds from the event will help VE produce more educational and social programs for disadvantaged youth in Santiago, Chile. We were also able to introduce VE to Chicago through the benefit and the press promoting it-- please check out the interview on Chicago Public Radio's Worldview. The digital camera count is currently a tentative 7 (as I am still checking out compatibility and cord situations) but this quantity is definitely enough to start some photography classes. To all who came, I really appreciate that you did. Thanks.


I'd like to say thank you to all of the visual artists that donated prints to the print sale. The layout of the Empty Bottle seemed a perfect fit for the type of event that Hello Chile ended up being. With the front door leading into a quieter gathering area, guests were able to collect information on VE, drop in a few raffle tickets and browse the rather extensive print sale before entering the music and bar space. All the artists proved incredibly generous, and I offer an enormous thank you to everyone who participated. Thank you to: Bernie McGovern, Patrick Tianen, Sarah Ferone, Scott Strazzante, Lindy Drew-- all the way from Chile! Michelle Schackmann, Steve Johnston, Saverio Truglia, Scott Polach, and Shauna Bittle. Thank you!


To all the musicians I extend my gratitude as well-- Beardog, Big Buildings, The Modern Temper, your energy flew from the stage like some sort of highly contagious disease that I seemed very eager to catch. And Shelley Short and your band, you played a perfect set to take a second and breathe a beer or two after the chaos of the night. Thanks to you all, many of whom I had never even met before. I'd also like to say thank you to all of the special visitors before the event started, and to Michelle Schackmann who helped keep details from slipping through the planning process and promoted with zeal. Michelle has also been accepted to VE and will be leaving for Santiago at the same time as me.


Check out the rest of the photos here on my flickr account. And if you couldn't make it to the event, feel free to make a secure contribution on my donations page. All proceeds still benefit VE and its endeavors.

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