Sunday, February 3, 2013

Fun at Lizzie's

Our first meeting of 2013 was held at Lizzie Kipner's gorgeous new digs in Malibu and what fun we had.  We gathered at Pine Tree Circle and carpooled down the hill with the prime seats in Teresa's fancy 11-seater bus which she drove like the seasoned pro that she is!

As always, the food was yummy and after grazing and nibbling and enjoying a glass or two of wine, we decided that it really was time to move away from the table and onto the latest TWC news.  But first we sold tickets for our Pottery Lottery...offering the remaining pieces of the beautiful pottery made by Kathy Goldberg.   Tickets sold like hot cakes and there were a number of happy winners at the end of the evening...we moved along every piece which means we didn't have to take it back to our Bin!  WIN WIN!

We shared with the group our successful Christmas gift giving/wrapping/delivery to the children at The Transitional Living Center (TLC) at Venice Community Housing.  We have learned not to be surprised by the generosity of our volunteers...but each year we are staggered by just how much you all do to ensure that these very, very needy children have a terrific Christmas, one that they will remember always.

As you all know, we are an incubator charity of Community Partners, a 501(c)(3) Corporation, established as an incubator for emerging charities.  They provide TWC with fiscal, legal and corporate sponsorship and allow us to operate as a fully tax-exempt organization and all donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.  Community Partners has a policy by which all their incubator charities must pay a minimum fee of $2,000 per annum.  We pay 9% on all revenues we earn and thus far we have taken in just over $9,000 this fiscal year. Our goal is to raise another $13,360 before June 30th so that we will not be paying out any monies for unreached goals.

To that end, we are asking that all of you keep your fundraising ideas coming.  Teresa is now on the Advisory Board and will be organizing a sub-committee that focuses on fundraising.  At the meeting we discussed the following ideas:

  • Patricia Mitchell suggested there may be some way in which a brief video about TWC could be shown prior to each screening at the Topanga Film Festival.  Teresa reminded us of Bruce's involvement with the Festival so she will chat with him about this idea.
  • It is not too early to think about Mother's Day.  Remember, each card is $25 and many of our members send them not only to moms, but sisters, aunts, cousins and friends.  Start making your list!
  • Singers and their songs!  We have so much talent in our group and maybe, just maybe, we can organize a fabulous event.  
  • Mary Morley shared an idea that she had heard about...raffling cases of wine and to that end, a couple of our members have offered cases of wine for this event!  Individual raffle tickets could be sold for $5, $20 for five.  This could be a community-wide event that raises  lots of needed funds.
  • We have written to Zev Yaroslavsky's office regarding another donation to TWC from their discretionary funds pool.  Zev has supported our group for the past few years and we fully expect another donation.
Lizzie suggested that her new home might be the perfect place for a fundraiser.  Lets think about it because what a terrific venue it would be.

New volunteer, Mary (I am sorry but I do not have your surname to hand), suggested that we might explore the possibility of more publicity for TWC via TV spots, news shows, press releases, etc.  When there is a slow news day, often filler pieces are used.  We could be such a filler!

We have a couple of upcoming set-ups which may well happen in the next week or two; one at Westwood Transitional Village and the other at the Transitional Living Center at Venice Community Housing.  

And finally, something that I just feel I need to mention.  The purpose of our meetings is to further the cause of TWC, not our own personal agendas.  For the same reason we cannot use our mailing lists for anything other than TWC business.  Thanks for remembering this.  You all are the absolute best and Karen and I appreciate each and every one of you and all you do.  Thanks for taking the notes, Nancy, and for keeping our Open Bin ticking along so nicely!

xoxo