Charity Camera Auction – Japan Tsunami Relief
Anyone who is familiar with my site knows that I am based in Japan. After the 2011 Tohoku earthquake I decided to stay in Japan and try to help to get Japan back on its feet. A year has passed and a lot has changed, but people in Tohoku still need help. This is your chance to help them and get something beautiful out of it too!
Luke Satoru, the man behind the beautiful camera jewellery pieces that have been featured on my site approached me a while ago with an idea. He had produced a one-off piece in black and decided to give it away to charity. So we thought, why not auction it off to the highest bidder? Sounds like a plan.
This is the only one of its kind and there will never be another. All of the proceeds for this are going to go to earthquake relief charities in Japan. Luke has kindly donated the jewellery, I am adding $100 to the bidding and promoting it on JCH, now it is up to you lot to dig deep.
We will not be giving to the Red Cross or something like that, as they are no longer accepting donations for the Japan Earthquake fund. But also because they are so big that you sometimes wonder where the money goes.
The local communities that were worst affected need grass roots help to assist them in the rebuilding of their lives. My personal suggestion is this group itsnotjustmud.com who have been doing some fantastic work with local communities in Tohoku. They are a really passionate bunch of guys who have built a great relationship with the people of Tohoku. You can really see results with them.
As you can see the camera is a stunning handmade piece of craftsmanship.
This miniature’s parts move like the original, including; shutter-button, film advance, film rewind, lens, open back. Cast in brass with palladium/silver plating, hand-lacquered, heat-treated resin, 100% hand-crafted.
I will personally put $100 in to start the bidding, and that will be donated by me no matter who wins the auction. The auction will run from today until next Sunday. Bidding will be conducted through the comments below, or you can mail me directly if you would prefer to remain anonymous. I will put the bids up on the comments.
I really hope we can raise a lot for the people of Tohoku and do something great. Please facebook, tweet, G+ or whatever you can do to pass this along.
Please make sure you bid, and be nice, rude comments and fake bidders will be deleted. You can get yourself a lovely piece of camera jewellery and know that you have done something to help a community in need.
*Congratulations to Stefan, the winner of the auction at 20,000 yen*
On a related note, if you have a camera that you are no longer using then please donate it to these guys photohoku.org, who are doing wonderful work with communities who lost everything. They are helping people to get back their memories. Check out their site and if you have a camera that you can give then please do so.
Cheers
Bellamy
Instead of highest bid to win the camera, I think a $1 a ticket (so a person donate $5 will get 5 tickets to increase his/her chances) to the join the lucky draw, you will get more money this way.
Lee
I thought about that, but the admin involved make it too much. Thanks for the suggestion though.
When will the auction end? And is there a way to know a current bid?
Bidding is currently at $100. Who will raise me $100?
Bidding ends on the 26th!
Assuming that you are accepting yen as well, I bid JPY 15,000 (about US$ 188?)!
Hear that people? Latest bid stands at 15,000 yen (approx $188).
That’s very benevolent of you, Bellamy! I wish I could raise the new auction bid, but will continue to support the small organizations with what I can!
Good luck to everyone else! It’s a beautiful piece you’re bidding on!
After having spent the weekend in Tohoku, and seeing how much still needs to be done, I am raising my bit to JPY 20,000!
Hear that folks? The current bid stands at 20,000 yen! This is fantastic. Can you beat that? If you cannot then perhaps you can help out by just making a donation for anything that you can afford, it is all appreciated.
Thanks
Bellamy
There is only a few hours to bid on this. Come along and see if you can win.
Congratulations to Stefan who is the winner of the auction. Including his bid of 20000 yen, my $100 and Luke who has offered to put in $100 too I think we have raised a nice little chunk of change.
Thanks everyone.