Provided to Newsline by Traci Rabenstein
Beginning Friday, Oct. 14, an online art auction to support the Ukrainian crisis response, overseen by Brethren Disaster Ministries, will open and receive bids for 180 donated art items.
This ecumenical fundraising event is the vision of Lucretia Crum, a member of the Lutheran Church. She along with three friends–Margie Fultz of Mechanicsburg (Pa.) Church of the Brethren, Mitzi Jones of the Lutheran Church, and Marilyn Zywiec of the United Methodist Church–came together to try and answer the question “What can we do?” about the horrific events playing out as the Russians invaded Ukraine.
Their answer: an online art auction that would feature art work from friends and colleagues from the central Pennsylvania area. As they worked out the details, they had to decide where the finale to the auction might take place, how they would collect the winning bids, and what organization they would bless with the proceeds. Fultz advocated for Mechanicsburg Church of the Brethren to be the location for the finale. Once they decided to support the response efforts through Brethren Disaster Ministries, they reached out to Traci Rabenstein, director of Mission Advancement for the Church of the Brethren, to use denominational resources to collect the winning bids and donations.
Please pray… For the success of the Ukrainian Crisis Auction, with gratitude for the artists who have contributed pieces and the work of the organizers.
The “4Friends” sent out a donation form request to artists stating, “The crisis in Ukraine is in the daily news, and in conversations around the world. Men, women, and children…families just like you and us, fighting for their lives, their homeland, and their very existence. We cannot imagine a more frightening situation than to see homes, towns, and countries unmercifully bombed. In response to the crisis in Ukraine, it is our desire to help bring comfort and aid to the survivors of ongoing violence and instability. We have come together with our brothers and sisters in Christ to form this online auction for the purpose of raising money specifically for the Ukrainian Crisis.”
To view the 180 donated art pieces and submit a bid, find the Ukrainian Crisis Auction online at www.biddingowl.com/Auction/home.cfm?auctionID=30707&CFID=52153573&CFTOKEN=264d46176ef563a3-42454FE8-0193-ACCF-6CFF86B90F08B7E4.
Go to www.mechanicsburgcob.org/ukrainian-crisis-auction for information on when the auction will end and details about the “Ukrainian Crisis Auction Dessert Finale” that will be held on Saturday, Oct. 22, at Mechanicsburg Church of the Brethren, 301 Gale St., Mechanicsburg, Pa.
— Traci Rabenstein is director of Mission Advancement for the Church of the Brethren.
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