A little update that fits neatly into a question that came up in the comments the other day. When I opened the mail box today, I found a letter from LOROS:
And the card really is for all of you, not just for me. My name is only on this because I transferred the money, but you made the 2020 RA Birthday Auctions the success it was:
What a lovely gesture from Ms Baker/LOROS to acknowledge our support with a hand-written card. It speaks for the very personal approach that this charity has – not just to the patients in their care and their families, but also to the supporters and donors. And it thus reinforces my belief that it was a good decision to support LOROS with our annual birthday bonanza.
Covid and fundraising
As touched upon by Ms Baker in her message, Covid has had devastating effects on charities and their fundraising efforts. This is supported by the findings of the UK-based Institute of Fundraising: In their June 2020 report the Institute finds that charities will fall short by about a quarter of their usual expected income for the year, resulting in a total loss across all charities of £12.4bn this year. A large proportion of charities (84%) already reported a decrease in their income by June.
Here are some interesting facts: Although LOROS is a regional charity, providing their services in a small area of the UK only, the charity nevertheless needs £8.4m every year. Apart from fundraisers such as ours, LOROS also receives funding through their charity/thrift shops as well as fundraising events. With Covid raging, shops and events have had to be closed and cancelled – leaving a massive hole in their fundraising goals.
Can we do something?
Which leads me to the question, as posed in the comments a couple of weeks ago: Is there any interest/demand/willingness for an additional Christmas fundraiser this year, benefitting LOROS? I am posing this question with reticence and in the lightest of ways, fully aware that the Covid crisis not only impacts charities but also those who donate to charities, i.e. us. The reason why charities are suffering, is that donors do not have as much disposable income themselves. So my question comes without any expectation or pressure! From my own perspective I will only say this: I am *always* ready and available to organise a fundraiser, happily giving my time for it, even in the run-up to Christmas. Moreover, I do have items in my “fundraising archive” that could be put up for auction. Additionally, after the discussions we have recently had, the next fundraiser – especially if smaller in scale – might provide the opportunity to test the fixed-price offerings. Not to mention that I know a few crafty ladies may already be chomping at the bit to find a worthwhile goal for their creative output… But whether we put on a fundraiser or not also depends on whether you think you people are willing and able to bid and/or buy only three and a half months after our previous event. I do not presume anything and I do not expect anything, either. I’m just putting the question out there.
As this question could be perceived as sensitive man, the anon really has traumatised me… maybe I am beginning to pussyfoot a bit too much… , here’s a completely anonymous poll where you can mark your opinion in case you don’t want to write a comment.
Remember – no pressure! No expectations, either. Comments welcome.
Guylty Pleasure 
Lovely card! Fundraisers are always fun and help to cheer us all up, I think… if you really can bear to do another one so soon!
LikeLike
That’s another point in favour – the fundraisers are always fun. And that’s something much needed, especially this year!
Thanks for weighing in, Helen!
LikeLike
What a lovely gesture. I agree, LOROS was a great choice for the donation.
You know me—I’ve never met an RA auction I didn’t enjoy, so I’m in if you’re up for it.
Could we try to collect some ideas for fixed price items? I’d be curious to know what people might be interested in.
LikeLike
LOROS are a great beneficiary – not least because they actively followed the fundraiser, and that acknowledgment really felt quite motivating. I’d be happy to continue supporting them.
Good point on the idea collection.
LikeLike
This is so lovely. Well done to everyone!
LikeLiked by 1 person
It really cheered me up to see such a lovely card from them.
LikeLike
What a really nice and personal acknowledgement from Lorus. It is shocking the amount of money that is needed each year. And this wretched pestilence is really hitting charity shops hard. I would be up for a Christmas auction and for providing a contribution. I’ve just been musing on an idea, which may be impractical or just daft, but what about a lucky dip? It would save a lot of work uploading images and writing individual entries on ebay. People could pay a fixed price for a mystery RA object. I don’t know if it would count as a raffle or if you get round it by having countless ‘mystery objects ‘ on ebay.
LikeLike
Crazy that services like the one provided by LOROS, has to be privately funded *at all*! I don’t think anyone would argue that it is vitally important (strange oxymoron in this context, but then again, death *is* part of life) to support people and families at that stage, yet it seems as if our health services are not concerned with that at all. Scandalous, really. But yeah, I agree it is a worth-while project to support.
The ‘lucky dip’ is a cool idea. I am going to add it to the list of ideas I am keeping, and we can discuss it further in a separate post.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a lovely note.
Don’t pussy foot because of idiots. They win when you do that.
LikeLike
You are very right, Zee. I won’t let them win, no way.
LikeLiked by 1 person
How lovely the Handwritten Thank You letter is ❤️
This is special after the huge success of the auction.
I like the idea of a Christmas auction and would provide some things.
🙏🏻
LikeLike
Brilliant – your contribution would be very welcome, Ani 😘
LikeLike
Glad to see them, (warmly even) acknowledge the donation. Your work on this is not lost on me, nor I suspect most of us that bid/buy in support.
I will wholeheartedly support anything you want to do. 💕
BTW-I owe you a letter! 🌻😁
LikeLike
Fabulous – thank you for that, Mimi. (And no worries about letters – we are all busy :-))
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a lovely acknowledgement. I really feel for smaller charities like Loros right now and would welcome continuing to support them. I like the idea of adding fixed price items to the enhance the auction offerings. Maybe some handcrafted items that are Christmas AND RA themed -such as ornaments. They would be something most could afford and wouldn’t have high postage costs. Another idea for a fixed price item could be an RA 2021 calendar. I’m sure you and many other creative ladies here have already got ideas percolating with the possibilities.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The Christmas theme is a lovely idea, Donna. I also love the idea of a calendar – the only issue with that is, as usual, copyright. The nicest pictures which everyone loves, belong to the photographers, so we can’t use them, even if for charity… However, maybe there are other ways… Anyway, these suggestions definitely will go on my ideas list!
LikeLike
Yes I hadn’t thought about the rights to some of our favorite photos but it got me thinking… do you think there are any fans who have photos they have personally taken of him at red carpet events etc that would be willing to donate them for a charity calendar? (you have taken some stunning ones) That would make for a unique fan collaboration I think.
LikeLike
That’s a great idea of a calendar with fan-photos. It would be unique too. I would offer my collection of ones of his stomach, instead of his face; his blurred hand, ditto; me mistakenly instead of him, blurred-face Armitage. It could be its USP – a bad photos of Armitage calendar! Seriously though there are some amazing shots of our man that fans have taken, enough to fill a calendar.
LikeLike
Exactly. I remember seeing quite a few fabulous shots over the years. Whether these people will want to share their work, I don’t know, but it’s worth trying. I’ve noted this idea down and will see if I can get in touch with some people.
LikeLike
haha, a photo mishaps calendar sounds hilarious – but where would you hang it? toilet door? 😀
LikeLike
Ha ha, yes, although I’m not sure I’d even want to hang it in there!
LikeLike
That’s a really interesting idea, Donna. I like it. And as you said, the collaborative aspect of it is an added bonus.
LikeLike
Another Idea re favourite photos and copyright: A handdrawn sketch/ artwork of copyrighted work is (at least in Austria…) then considered a new work so that the *new* copyright is with the artist of the drawing. Is it the same in Ireland? (but actually it shouldn’t matter if you are just the one selling it and for the arguments sake all the artwork *could* have been created in Austria and then published under a suitable creative commons licence etc.)
So, long story short: Twelve paintings/ drawings/ charcoal sketches/ whatever of the “Favourite Photos” for a calendar – how does that sound? I could offer a Porter pencil drawing (but I’m not perfectly happy with the facial expression…if I can somehow embed a pic in a comment (??) you all will see what I mean)
The really hard part about this whole idea: narrowing it down to 12 Pics 😉
LikeLike
I’d be interested.
LikeLike
Great! Thanks for your reply!
LikeLike
I suspect lots of us do a donation at Christmas to one of RA’s previously mentioned charities so if we just did Lorus it might make more of an impact . The calendar is a good idea
LikeLike
You are making a point that I am very much aware of, too. I have often thought that it really would make much more of an impact if RA hadn’t diversified his portfolio of supported charities so much. I understand why he has, and it is of course also a reflection on his awareness of the many worthy causes, but if he concentrated his “incidental” fundraising on a smaller number of charities, he could really make much more of a difference for those charities. Anyway, hence I am also very much in favour of long-term supporting *one* cause – particularly if it is a local/regional charity for whom our donation *really* makes a difference.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I agree. You can’t support every cause that’s worthy, much as one would like to, so you have to pick something. Well, he picked a whole bunch of somethings. If he chose one and actually did something concrete for them—take part in a promo thing or donate a signed item or something similar—it would compound the effect. And considering his personal connection, LOROS would be the obvious choice.
But he hasn’t and he likely won’t. However, if you were to suggest that we pick one cause for our future fundraising activities, I would be 💯 on board.
LikeLike
Yeah, I guess at this point it would be hard for him to cancel some of the causes he has been supporting via JustGiving. It would certainly draw comment – and questions. So there are several causes we can support – and it’s up to us to make a decision whether we want to spread the support across several charities, or concentrate on just one. My opinion is well-known, but I’m happy to let the majority decide…
LikeLike
You’re right. He couldn’t outright disavow them, but it would still be possible to concentrate on promoting one while leaving the JustGiving links up. I’d be curious to see the numbers by charity. I have a feeling that there’s a clear favorite anyway.
LikeLike
I was tempted to say that no, there wasn’t a clear favourite, but I am wrong. But just as an overview, I just checked the numbers on his JustGiving pages:
Childline – ￡14,183
Barnardo’s – ￡10,953
Salvation Army – ￡15,808
Shelter – ￡17,915
Anthony Nolan – ￡7,880
Cybersmile – ￡14,068
Action f Children – ￡13,017
Interesting – the last three were actually added a few years later than the first four, and yet, they have quite caught up (apart from Anthony Nolan). Especially Cybersmile. (Which irks me because I don’t like that particular charity.)
However, here comes the big winner:
LOROS – ￡29,255
Well, there we have it. Your theory has been proven!
LikeLike
Oh, I didn’t know you could look that information up. Thanks for checking.
And yes, just as I suspected. Considering LOROS has only been up for two years, it’s the overwhelming favorite. And it makes total sense. It’s the one that has an actual, genuine connection to him. I’d love for him to promote that more.
LikeLike
Yep, the total raised is visible on each of the JustGiving sites. (It’s just awkward finding those sites because you can’t simply search for “Richard Armitage” on JustGiving and then get a list of his supported charities. Really stupid, that.)
There definitely is a lesson in it. Fans like to support the cause that is closest to their favourite actor’s heart. As you said – genuine connection.
LikeLike
And in light of that, if he were to give them a little more attention than the others, nobody would fault him for it. They cared for his mother. It would be more than understandable.
LikeLiked by 1 person
It would be an easy explanation/way out for him…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have an item I could donate to be sold at an auction, fyi, and I would cover the cost to ship it to someone in the U.S. (U.S. only, if that can be stipulated, sorry but my patience for “donating” runs out at customs forms and paying more to ship than what the item costs), at your direction, if my terms aren’t too cranky.
LikeLike
I am *always* happy to receive *any* donation, even with stipulations 😉 Those terms totally make sense. Thank you for the offer!
LikeLike
The Thank You card is a really lovely and heartwarming gesture, Loros were a good choice for our donation. They need quite a lot of money to be able to work, I admit I didn´t expect that and the losses they suffer are really massive, it´s sad.
A Christmas fundraiser is a great idea, I always enjoy the Birthday auctions and we coud really help them once more.
LikeLike
It’s just so sad that the charity is affected so badly by the pandemic. I really hope we can make a difference with our fundraiser. Glad to have you on board again, Andrea xx
LikeLike
What a wonderful (handwritten!) card! ❤️
I hoped/hope for Christmas fundraising/actions 🙏🏻 I always donate to Richard’s charities on Christmas.
LikeLike
Well, a thank you is due to you, Olga, because you are the one who posed the question. (I had kind of written off another fundraiser this year, because I did not want anyone to feel pressure from my expectations.) I am more than happy if we can pull off another fun little project for good.
LikeLike
What a lovely gesture from Loros – but well deserved for all your hard work, Guylty, and the generosity of everyone here.
LikeLike
It’s nice that they acknowledged it in such a personal way. I mean, we have received acknowledgments from other charities before (Save the Children), but they used to be just the usual pre-composed type. This was definitely special.
LikeLike
Loros est une belle cause, mais parmi les choix de Richard Armitage d’autres causes sont dignes d’intérêt également.
LikeLike
Absolutely true, A, and we have supported other charities in the past (Save the Children, Young Minds). I am always happy to put it to the vote who we benefit with our donation, but personally I would argue for choosing ONE charity and then basically sticking with it – in order to make a bigger impact. But that is a decision that I am happy to come to in a democratic way.
LikeLiked by 1 person
What a lovely thank you note! And yes, I’d definitely be in for a Christmas auction.
LikeLike
Fabulous – thank you for your reply!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Im pondering and percolating. I am very tired atm so ideas not coming fat and thick but I’ll see if I can come up with an idea for fixed price item. No pressure to accept whatever I do suggest though. There quite a few good suggestions already being bandied about
LikeLike
No pressure, and no particular hurry, either, Rachel. Yep, things are looking pretty dreary at the moment. It might take a few days/weeks to get our bearings. Serious planning of the next fundraiser won’t start until November, anyway…
LikeLike
i’ve made a thing. i’ll send you a pic on twitter
LikeLike
What a lovely acknowledgement from LOROS!
LikeLike
Yep – very personal and thoughtful of them.
LikeLike
Ahh what a lovely letter 💜💖 congratulations! 💖🌷👏 it was so sweet of them to send it to thank for the donation
I read about your idea of a calendar for Christmas. Ahh I really would love to participate, but I don’t know how and I am not sure if it could be possible for me 😆 but it would be so great. How everything will be so good as your previous auctions 👍💕😃
LikeLike
The thank you is for all of you 🙂
The calendar idea is really great – I’ll try and organise that. In terms of participating – if you have a great photo of RA that you have taken yourself, you could allow us to use that. Otherwise participation is possible via bidding on auction items or buying a fixed price item. No details ready yet, but there will be something on sale in December. Also, we appreciate any support in terms of signal-boosting and following any event. That is a contribution that is very valuable, too
😘
LikeLike
Pingback: 2020 Armitage Weekly Round-up #42 | Guylty Pleasure
Pingback: It’s Happening – December FundRAiser [Announcement] | Guylty Pleasure
Pingback: The Gift Has Been Received #2020DecemberFundRAiser | Guylty Pleasure