Faith Without Works is Dead - James 2:26

 What a journey..... You know, I'm about to do this thing. I've done it once before. I am embarking on a journey where I know little about how to get there or what I will find along the way. 

Hmm :). It has been quite the wrestle for me to get here. I've learned that Bucking Up! & doing something...creating something, will also lead to you finding the courage to Buck Up! & turn it loose....turn parts of it loose. Flow......

I'm not going to pretend that the last little bit of life hasn't been hard at moments....it was....REAL hard, but it has also been FULL and grEAT & enriching. 

Sometimes, I catch myself pondering if it actually had to be as hard as it has been at times, but....it makes it matter. It is truly like putting something in the fire, beating on it, and building and measuring it's strength. 

Gosh....there are things I know now....I've known (but doubted myself (SO much)) that people just can't take away.....and maybe.....may never really be able to understand. They are for me, because I've done it. I've walked it. I've built it. I've lived it. I've tweaked it and changed it and rebuilt it. I've tried new things. Had moments of failure and successes. I've helped a lot of people. I've taught a lot of people a variety of things. Yes....I have experienced: self doubt, lack of faith, wasted time, money, & energy, compromise, deceit, lies, verbal abuse, confusion, relationship tainting, miscommunication, disruption, abandonment, theft, info hoarding, mismanagement, disloyalty, repairing of relationships, regret, slander, confusion, uncertainty, doubt, betrayal, my time, talents, and energy squandered, let-down, full hope and empty hope....all leading me to the next adventure. 

Now....I start out different. I'm happy, BLESSED, and thankful for what I know now. The luggage I can bring with me this time......BUT ONLY WHAT I NEED. In all the traveling since my last adventure; I've learned that I prefer to travel light. 

You all might see some changes in me. There are things I will still HOPE for, but not much :). I'll hope in my plan because I know who I've consulted with. I'll hope in my family because I believe in them and us. I'll hope in Jesus, God, & The Holy Spirit because I KNOW what they are capable of. The journey has taught me a few things....and you can take this to the bank: "...faith without works is dead..." James 2:26. This verse may sum up the biggest lesson I NEEDED regarding self-worth, discerning who I am called to help and who I am not, how to actually care for and value myself and protect and reserve myself for those that He calls me to. 

The journey has also taught me to think bigger, with a bird's eye view.....or BIGGER. It's taught me to watch out for "limits" because there are none. It's taught me to REALLY pay attention to what brings me and others around me JOY.....real joy.....not joy from striving and trying.....relaxed, limitless, free-flowing joy. 

I am not going to spend my time HOPING with any of you. No offense, but life is short and I don't want to get caught up in your "I don't knows" and "I'm not sures," and your "I need help-but don't want to listen mentalities." I want to work with people that want the help and will do the work to get it. In EVERYTHING I do, it takes W - O - R - K to bring it to fruition. 

An EXPLOSION of Creativity

Art, CreaTIViTy…..I'm seeing it EVERYWHERE, in every way. MOST ESPECIALLY, THIS week, I have found myself DRAWN to poetry, art, design, art & science projects & differnt forms of art & expression. The words I would tie to my most recent experiences with ART are: curiosity, a retreat, an escape, a release, joy, light, connectedness, memories, reminders, a glimpse. 

Tonight, I will share images of some of the pieces, quotes, and artwork that have been inspiring to me this week, in one way or another. You can also check out my Pinterest Boards & FOLLOW ME there at: www.pinterest.com/HDSKaspar. Main boards to check out would be: "Words to Live By...," "Jesus," "Mother Mary," "William Blake," "Art," & "Animals." (God's CREATION is the MOST amazing.)

Reflecting, yet again, on personal experiences..... part of the "overwhelm" I, (& I believe, many others feel) is an EXPLOSION of creativity....literally. I see it everywhere in EVERYTHING. Here are some examples from my life: 

• Fundraising auctioneers brainstorming & CREATEing online, virtual, & tailored alternatives for fundraising, due to social distancing restrictions.
• Livestock exhibitors & their parents finding CREATIVE alternatives to the typical show/sale environment. 
• CREATIVE ways to share, explain, educate the public on how different industries are handling this shutdown and what it means for business.
• Businesses shifting & adjusting to find a way and CREATE a way to adapt & offer their goods/services in a variety of different ways.
• The adjustment of our own "typical" marketing campaigns, to find new ways to reach people.
• Business owners changing their business plans as the observe the changes they are seeing before their eyes.
•  The GAZILLION different ways people are staying connected to those they can't see. 
• ART pieces & social media posts encouraging ALL the "essential" workers.
• ART pieces & social media posts encouraging people in general.
• I have experienced more CREATIVE negotiating tactics & creative excuses :)........just being honest. 
• Face masks, as a form of EXPRESSION.
• SO MANY more Facebook games & challenges, seeming to all be geared at finding a connection.
• An OVERWHELMING increase in email MARKETING, with many different messages.
• The many ways President Trump and other government leaders are keeping us informed. 
• The ways communities are COMING TOGETHER & creating ways to show support to: high school seniors, athletes, college graduates, the elderly, the struggling, the recently unemployed, area non-profits, medical employees, city officials, EMS/EMT, doctors, nurses
• The documentaries that are replacing some of the MUCH MISSED sporting events.
• Strategic plans for non-profits changing and adapting & how they are communicating that change. 

I could keep going. I find myself being more creative & I'M LOVING IT! I've missed it. In fact, I had no idea I has gotten so far from it. I'm glad to be back! Buck Up Baby & let yourself be as CREATIVE as you want to be. Don't put ANY limits on yourself & ENCOURAGE CrEAtivIty in others. God bless ALL of you!

William Blake

William Blake

William Blake

William Blake

William Blake

William Blake

WHY should you come to Zapp Hall on Saturday?

I have a lot to say & well...I didn't intend for it to get pulled out of me way that it is. It's private & special and WORTH sharing, so here goes!

3 Years ago I had an idea....& yes....it was "weird" and random & complicated. It was the Spring Antique Show of 2014. For those of you not familiar with the Round Top - Warrenton Antiques Festival here in Texas, it is an incredible BI-ANNUAL, 2 week long (and growing) extravaganza of ANTIQUES, & DesiGners, Artisans, Artists, Collectors, & TREASURE Hunters. There are fields FOR MILES full of tents of these vendors, halls piled FULL, venues & facilites just FULL of ANYTHING & EVERYTHING anyone could want. People come from ALL OVER the world! I had to paint the picture. My heart tends to lead me to the dusty fields.

So... 3 years ago in April of 2014, I was feeling my way through the auction industry & trying to find my place. I am all about guerilla marketing & it was eating me up that I had not thought of a way to share the AUCTION AWESOMENESS with ANYONE who might listen to me there. I mean....THOUSANDS of people. I had an antique consignment auction there a year earlier, which was pretty successful for my FIRST auction on my own, but I realized quickly that I was competing with the show itself for the crowd of people that I wanted to reach. I didn't want to do that again. People come there to SHOP, to spend time with each other, to share in their common love for Antiques...JuNk,...clothes....whatever suits their fancy. I didn't really want to mess with that. I wanted to be a part of it &&&&& promote what I LOVE.

SO....dun...dun...dun.... My idea was to spend an ENTIRE week of the show, traveling from field to field - asking the vendors if they wanted to donate an item where the funds would go to a charity of their choice, and allow me to have an auction....right there at their tent....and grab the attention of anyone that was around. I had reached out to a list of non-profits for them to choose from, created these handy-dandy agreements & my pal Christie & I set out to conquer the fields of Warrenton....one tent at a time. Let's just say.....more vendors than not.....didn't think it was as cool of an idea as we did. We got A BUNCH of NOs....BUT we talked A LOT about auctions.

Christie & I setting up at Chelsea's Meadow in Round Top. She'll be with me at Zapp tomorrow!

We finish up the evening, go eat in Round Top & just sit & recap. We had gotten the name of WHO we needed to talk to at Zapp Hall, but decided we needed to meet the next day. We were beat up. I don't even know how it happened, but somehow my other friend Cathy felt compelled to introduce me to Larry & Jennifer Clack from the Chelsea's Meadow field in Round Top. He asked me my idea & I remember being so.....apprehensive in sharing & HE. LOVED. IT. First breath of life with this idea. They asked us to come by the field the next day after I met with Zapp.

Next morning...I head over to Zapp Hall to meet with Bobby Boyd & Cheryl - the owner of Zapp. I sit down. Tell him my idea & he said. We have a vendor that was supposed to be here. She's been diagnosed with cancer & she couldn't make it. I KNOW I can get all our vendors on board, if the funds we raised went to her. There was a medical fund that was set up for her, so our next plan was to figure out how to make that work, adjusted the plan, & went to work marketing.

I head over to Chelsea's Meadow in the afternoon. I sit down with Jennifer, share my FULL idea with her, the progress that was made that day & she opens up about her friend (in her 30s, 4 children, a husband who had just been laid off, in late stage cancer.) By the end of that conversation, we were having two auctions, & helping two groups of people HELP their people.

So what is all this about right? Why is this such a big deal? When I had the "Wandering Auctioneer" idea....my intent was to spread the POWER of auctions & how they bring people together. It was not to make money....at all. Why would someone spend so much time doing this IF they weren't getting paid? So here is the personal part....

Yes...that is a little red wagon, with a PA System & those AWESOME flyers.

A little more than 11 years ago, my Dad had went into a diabetic coma. His organs had started to fail & they were able to bring everything back except his liver. If he was going to live he HAD to have a transplant. That. Was. A. Fact. I remember having a family meeting. It was me & my two siblings, Mom, Dad & Uncle Melvin - who is a cattle auctioneer. They gave us the low down. They shared the RIDICULOUS amount of money we needed to raise & I just remember my sister and I going from panic & uneasiness to problem-solving mode. We immediately started talking about fundraisers & we immediately started pounding Uncle Melvin with questions. He has called HUNDREDS of church feasts & picnics & fireman's feasts & to put it plainly....we just figured it out. We had no REAL idea of the work that went into these events. We just knew we had to do it. Let me tell you....you learn REAL QUICK you can't do it all on your own.

That's my Pops...helping me make our hand-glued hand fans for the escapades of the "Wandering Auctioneer."

I. WILL. NEVER. FORGET. How our community & family & friends rallied around us. One of my Dad's old friends had called me, asked me what was going on & I shared it all. I literally thought she was calling just because she wanted to know. She was an editor for a Tri-County Newspaper & that next Thursday there was a FRONT-PAGE article about the benefit for my Dad. We had SO many items come in for the auction that we had to plan more fundraisers, with more auctions to sell it all. We had 3. A dinner, dance & auction in our hometown - a Team Penning Benefit with Live & Silent Auctions & Live Music - & a Ranch Sorting Benefit in Ledbetter with a Live Auction. Between the 3 we had raised somewhere around $90,000 - which was still not enough, but with the sale of some land to my AMAZING Uncles....We.Got.It.Done.

When the dust settled & you looked at the numbers.... The numbers from plate sales, the numbers from dance sales & the numbers from the auctions....the auctions OVERWHELMINGLY got us where we needed to get. TRUTH.....An auction seed was planted in me that day that would start blooming 3 years later...down to the month. I got my auction license in the mail in November 2011. We were fundraising in November 2008.

Here's the thing though....all of that is GREAT & important, but as a young person, I could not understand the WHY. WHY did these people come out of the woodwork with these items? Why did the bidders CHOOSE to spend their money this way? WHY did some of them show up at each one? Why? Why? WHY? & HOW could we EVER possibly thank them all. Here is my conclusion: They weren't looking for anything. They CHOSE to freely give. They gave because it mattered. They gave because they cared. They gave because they could. They gave because something resonated with them in such a way that it compelled them. It's one of those things where a "Thank You" in the Newspaper & on a thank you card couldn't even begin to do it justice. It was bigger than any one of us. It was bigger than the situation. It was BIG & the Auction Method & the Auctioneer made it happen. From that day forward I couldn't help but see both as PROBLEM - SOLVERS.

This is me calling my second auction. Uncle Melvin (Our life-long Problem-Solver)
catching bids for me at the Carmine Volunteer Fire Department.
 (My Uncle Fritz is in the plaid shirt behind us.)

I've had my license since 2011 & I have been HELPING PEOPLE SOLVE PROBLEMS ever since & I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT. It IS the greatest business in the world. I went from not knowing my place to helping clients solve: Real Estate Problems, Fundraising Problems, Liquidation Problems, Estate Problems, Surplus Problems....

SO...when Bobby Boyd sent me a message in March, asking if I'd be able to help them raise money for 2 members of their Zapp Hall Family... I figured out how to make it work. In November...The Tedders of J.Tedder Design were in a MAJOR car accident. They have two children. Jason has not been able to fully go back to work & Jessica has, just recently. Two years ago...The Tedders not only donated items, but bought items to show their support.

J. Tedder Design Original Piece

J. Tedder Design Original Piece

J. Tedder Design Original Piece

J. Tedder Design Original Piece

J. Tedder Design Original Piece

EVERYTHING YOU DO MATTERS. Breathe life into someone. I mean...I would not be where I am today if someone didn't positively see purpose in my thoughts...in my life...in the life of my Dad. PEOPLE MATTER. You LITERALLY can always make more money, but an OPPORTUNITY to breathe life into someone is truly a gift.

We will be running two heats :). First auction starts at 12:30 - second one at 2PM. We will be RIGHT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ZAPP FIELD. Look for PURPLE signs.

Buck Up Baby & BE THERE! :)

P.S. HAPPY NEWS: My Pops is still kickin' & has gotten to see all THREE of his grandbabies, of which he ABSOLUTELY ADORES. Both ladies that we raised money for in 2014 won their cancer battle!

H.Kaspar
TXL 17037
www.buckupauctions.com

Just live.

We are edging closer to our upcoming fundRAISING auction that will benefit Mrs. Judy Mikeska & help her pay for her ever-mounting medical expenses. I had the opportunity to sit down and visit with Judy's supervisor & FRIEND that is organizing the fundraiser & simply asked for an update. 

Judy (currently) is cancer-free from the head down EXCEPT her lung, which will cause her to move to Temple for 6 weeks, where she will undergo an intense round of chemo treatments. 

Her supervisor shared a story about how they are supposed to fill out an end of year plan & how Judy's was filled with plans & goals & she said the last time they talked Judy made the comment..."Maybe I should wipe all that off that paper and write...'Just live.'"

It struck me somewhere when she said that. JUST live... 

This blog has challenged me a little more than most. I'm thankful that I haven't had to endure the cancer journey like so many of us have. My Daddy did have cirrhosis in his liver & they did find a tumor, but with his transplant was BLESSED to not have to endure the walk that so many others do. I don't want to sit here and type like I KNOW what she's going through. I have personally wrestled with WHY God allows things like cancer to happen...even exist...along with tragedies, hardships, abuse....

When Erin said... Just live...it took me back to a place when we found out that my Daddy would need a liver transplant to LIVE. I remember not really thinking about much else, except HOW can we make that happen. 

As I've grown older & am sloooowly coming to the realization that we CAN achieve things, but what God wills to happen WILL happen....I reflect back on that place that Judy & I both apparently came to & that is to JUST do the next best thing we can, where we stand. 

I've recently read & am currently reading 2 books (The Shack by Wm. Paul Young & Wrestling with Wonder by Marlo Schalesky). It took both of them to get me here... I've learned that doing the next best thing is all God really CALLS us to do. He doesn't call us to fix all the problems, accomplish the unachievable, or move any kind of mountain. He doesn't ask us to NOT feel the hurt, NOT show our emotions, NOT dream & will & hope. He just asks us to move forward WITH HIM, one foot in front of the other...holding His hand. 

I've also learned that to JUST LIVE can be a lot harder than all the other things we try and pile on top of us. We KNOW how to move to a goal we KNOW we can achieve. We KNOW that we can attend those meetings. We KNOW we can give a certain amount of us to any job, project, function. BUT...sometimes we don't know how to JUST LIVE. I guess there is the blessing in all of this. Why do we try to do anymore than what God calls us to? I believe the answer is because the world has conditioned us that way. Remember what Jesus said to His Father: "They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world." John 17:16 (I ENCOURAGE whoever is reading this to read all of John 17.)

So....ALL THAT BEING SAID....all any of us can do is walk one foot in front of the other...clinging to God's hand and those around us that are willing to SUPPORT us. I'm not going to ask you to do anything you don't want to do, but if you WANT to come out and support Judy & her family....while they walk one foot in front of the other...there are ALL KINDS of ways you can do that. 

You can donate an auction item. A group of you can donate an auction item. You can buy an auction item in the LIVE or silent auction. You can join together and buy an item in the LIVE or silent auction. You can buy BBQ chicken dinner plates. You can make a donation to the GoFundMe account. You can buy raffle tickets. You can buy a card for the gun raffles at the event. You can come out and volunteer. You can be present. Erin is your main contact and her information is on the flyer below (Email Link: EmWilley87@hotmail.com). If you want to...you have options. 

It just amazes me how The Holy Spirit moves among us. I pray I can be a blessing for this family how so many were a blessing to mine. The power of community and relationships is not of this world either. It goes beyond the rules and our ability to understand.....and it definitely trumps any kind of bad in any kind of form. 

Buck Up Baby! Come out & show your support. I CAN speak with experience in that....this family will NEVER be able to form the words to REALLY express their appreciation for ANY act of kindness & support you can provide. Just KNOW that your support and kindness...no matter how small you think it is... is POWERFUL.

God Bless. 

Heather Schoenst Kaspar

TXL 17037

More Info at: www.buckupauctions.com

What's a Cowgirl Do?: Keep Calm & Ride On

We have an auction coming up this SATURDAY @ Chicken Ranch Dancehall in NECHANITZ for the BEAUTIFUL Paige "Bird" Norsworthy. I don't personally KNOW Paige, but I do know what its like to be a COWGIRL. I know how SCarY the UNKNOWN of the medical world is. I've got a DADDY that had to FIGHT one medical issue to come back to us & then FIGHT to stay with us. My family & I had to RALLY ALL of EVERYTHING we had & what others would GIVE to raise $$ to GET him what he NEEDed that we couldn't provide on our own. I've worked in hospitals where I have seen first-hand...the StrUGGle people face when they have to make a decision... A DECISION to become a victim or to FIGHT thru the stRugGLE & GROW from it.

We will all face that decision & some of us MULTIPLE times & let me tell you... It is NOT AN EASY DECISION. It is comprised of multiple battles within the decision. There are PLENTY of things that can get you down & there are plenty of things that COULD keep you there. There are times when no family member, no nurse, & no BEST friend can give you what you need & YOU have to reACH deep within yourself to KEEP yourself....to not hand yourself over...

Growing up I didn't have many "cowgirls" around me in school, but we went to cuttings damn near EVERY weekend. Me & my sister weren't AFRAID to climb on ANYTHING. It was natural. We wanted to be able to do MORE than just ride. We wanted to LEARN how to make a horse move, how to read a cow, how to change leads, how to start a young horse on cattle... WHEN a horse started buckin' we WANTED to RIDE it thru... teach it to side pass... spin & cross over the right way... do things RIGHT. We'd get picked on every so often about "cowgirl" things & the way we went about things & as the years pass on, I have LEARNED a few THINGS...from ALL of my experiences (horseback & not). DON'T GET ME WRONG. We are ALL SpecIAL....but cowgirls have this...something in their character....this personal, private GRIT....this GRIT surrounded by love & light & ENERGY....this...."You got me down now sucker, BUT just wait until I GET UP" kind of attitude. In the things that REALLY MATTER to us...Nothing is ever really ENOUGH. PAIGE is a full-fledged "cowgirl." If she's anything like me...she could care less for the label, but nonetheless...the fight that girl has is undeniable. Once you ARE one...you can't lose it....even if you don't ride for YEARS... The skills & horseback ability may fade a little, but the GRIT will FOREVER & EVER be there. 

I was looking through my Facebook feed last night & I saw this picture of Paige at her Semi-formal. She was rockin' that helmet! It takes COURAGE (no matter how much people like you, love you, & SUPPORT you) to step out & BE SEEN....when not very many people have SEEN you in that light... & When seein' yourself in that light is DifFereNt.

I get anxious before my auctions because I KNOW not only what the individuals go thru, BUT what family & friends are going thru...all the emotions. All the LOVE. All the WANT. All the everything & I want to make EVERY SINGLE AUCTION the VERY BEST it can possibly be. The WHOLE event really... What made me DECIDE to walk the BENEFIT & fundRAISING auction journey with my business is how networks of people come together....businesses, friends, families, high-school students, co-workers, past employees, friends of friends....come together...& LIFT EACH OTHER UP. Accidents, illnesses, tragedies....they don't discriminate. We ALL can get knocked down....get the wind knocked out of us....get blind-sided. We ALL get depressed, get discouraged, get lost & WE ALL need each other to LIFT US UP. That's why GOD put us here. To NEED him & NEED each other to learn, to grow, to live, to appreciate, & to support. I am HONORED to be able to provide a team to give ALL we've got to RAISE as much $$ as we can. I am also HONORED to help another COWGIRL & ENCOURAGE her to ALWAYS shine her light. That's why GOD GAVE IT TO US!!

BUCK UP BABY!! COME ON OUT!! THROW THOSE HANDS UP!! You can't take that $$ with you & there is always more to be made!! The flyer is below with details. You can drop off auction items at the Chicken Ranch Dance Hall FRIDAY from 12-3 Or Saturday starting at 1PM until before the auction. 

Heather Kaspar

TXL#17037

Our Antique Fair Adventure: Day 2 of the Wandering Auctioneer

I LOVE my job. So after spending lots of time yesterday & early this AM talking to land owners & show organizers....we changed our plan again. The BEAUTY of this is: every time we change it, it gets better, it means more, we REALLY get to meet people & appreciate them, their cause, their ideas. GOD IS GOOD...folks.

We started this thing KNOWING that some people were going to think we were CraZy; that some people just wouldn't like it one bit; & some people might not get it. In fact... these very things made me try to find a way out of it at least 3 times since the idea came about.

I die daily. Die in my courage & I have to muster it back up. Die in my ambition & have to re-motivate myself. Die in my FAITH regarding this IDEA that God won't let me let go of  & have to TRUST that he's not letting me let go of it for a reason. BUT PRAISE JESUS he gives me the STRENGTH to get it all back.

We developed our idea & as we were REALLY goin' back & forth about what to do (amongst Christie wrestlin' with her little one about snowcones & popcorn & me tryin' to help my hard-of-hearin' Daddy understand my 4-year old over the phone....God sent us a few angels. I walked back to the picnic tables on Granny McCormick's Field & told Christie that I'm gonna have to buy my Daddy another box of bullets & a steak dinner for the temper tantrum my sweet, precious little girl was throwin'- we made friends.

I guess they overheard us talkin' about our pretty final plan & Hector the Collector & Ye-Yea's (over at Tin Star Field) go check them out!!) wanted to be a part of it. I know it may not seem like much, but it gives me a little shot of reassurance that I'm not wastin' my time & spinnin' my wheels.

Then...this sweet precious lady...a disciple of Christ really...just touched me & Christie. There was A LOT of things we talked about from the medical industry, doctors, & OBAMAcare to "not shinin' our light on more light, but shinin' in the dark places." She told me to keep on with what I'm doin', that it was good, & that she would be prayin' for me.

Needless to say what we are doing is good & we have ALREADY met SO MANY wonderful people! & BELIEVE ME...there is much more to come. We KNOW we will be holding 2 different auctions on Saturday. THIS Saturday. The first will start at either 11AM @ the FAMOUS ZAPP Hall! It's a WANDERING AUCTION & stay tuned for MORE details.

The other will be Saturday evening at Chelsea's Meadow in Round Top, Texas! It will be at 5:30PM. There will be delicious food & they already have some really cool items. There's no buyer's premium at either one. Come on out and support both of these gals fightin' like heck to KICK CANCER'S BUTT!!!

BUCK UP BABY!! Come out to these auctions & keep checking back for more details!

Heather Kaspar
TXL#17037

Holy Moly I'm Gettin' Roly Poly :).

Holy Moly...I know....It's been another month. I'll eventually get back on track, with my blog posts.

I plan on gettin' ya'll up to date on all the goins' on & auction business, baby business, and whatever else I want to throw in here.

First of all...I've done a few auctions, since the last blog, so I'll share with ya what I learned from them & all the fun & NOT SO FUN festivities that went with it.

The auction I did right after my last blog was for the Aransas County 4-H Livestock Club. It was a GREAT little fundraiser. It wasn't a lot of items, but let me tell ya...I think I got every penny outta those folks that I could. I have to claim a few bragging rights :). The highest baked item they sold last year was $65. This year we had several hit the $100+ mark. It was funny. At first, when I would try to get the bidders name after buying an item, I'd get responses like "Stupid" - for paying so much for a pie. I know some people can't wrap their heads around it, but this little club has 7 or so kids that raise animals. It's not like Fayette County where MOST of the kids are involved, & these kiddos bust their butts with their livestock projects and are developing skills that make them VERY well-rounded individuals. In my opinion it makes you anything but stupid to support a great group of kids/cause/organization. I'm sure we've all spent money on much worse.

Thank you Jimmie Knarvek for the photos!

The entire floor @ Paws & Taws, with some of the kiddos helping out.

Nonetheless...by the time we rolled on with the auction people changed their frame of mind. Lesson for ANYONE putting on ANY kind of auction. No matter what you or a donor think something is worth - It has to be worth it to the bidders in your audience. If you don't have a crowd that understands art...it'll be hard to get what it's "worth." Learn your audience and think about items they would like OR find other avenues to advertise the items that are not for the majority. All it takes is 2 bidders that want what you've got, BUT...they have to know about it.

I got to sell all kinds of neat stuff like: a cowboy hat signed by George Stait (boy...you shoulda seen the comotion it caused :)), welding projects made by the kids, and all kinds of goodies. Plus...I left there with a Smoker & a bunch of BEEF!!! You'll never guess how....

I guessed the weight of one of these here Market Goats :) (The red & white one). That's right! 74 lbs 8oz.... Only 1 oz off from the ACTUAL weight. SKILLS!!!

I had another auction. This one....let's just say...was a learning experience. They had the auction "advertised, organized, and handled." They just needed an auctioneer. Well....it was NOT organized the way I would've done it. In fact....It's made me look at things in a WHOLE new perspective.

Folks, YOU GET WHAT YOU PUT INTO IT. IF YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING....HIRE SOMEONE WHO DOES. You can raise a lot more money by doing things right. There was NO CASHIER TABLE set up, NO SPOTTERS (except who I wrangled together), NO ACCURATE INFORMATION on some of the items up for auction. On top of that the items that I was SUPPOSED to sell were put into a raffle.

By all means. We raised some money & it was more than what they had before, BUT...I don't like things done half way. SO MUCH MORE MONEY COULD HAVE BEEN RAISED & it FRUSTRATES me....if you couldn't tell. Auctions are busy, fast-paced environments and stuff happens, BUT if you have all your stations set up the way you need them - the more efficient everything will be.

From now on....if I have ANY inkling that they don't have it together...I'm not doing it. None of what happened was in my hands AT ALL, but I left FRUSTRATED & ANNOYED because it could have been SO much better. If you are not going to place any importance on an auction....DON'T DO ONE & focus on what you do find important. This group had an AMAZING OPPORTUNITY to raise money for their cause, but didn't ask the right questions to the right people. LIVE AUCTIONS at fundraising events are often the #1 MONEYMAKING element...

One person told me they expected the auction to bring more. When you take items like: Flat Screen TVs, Shotguns, Metal Art, etc.... & put them in a raffle and leave me to sell baskets packed with small things (like candles & lotion) & don't have them displayed where the bidders can see them & have incorrect information on some items - all I can do is try and get the most money that someone is willing to give. Also, if you are going to tell a donor that you are going to auction off their item & then - you move it to some other fundraising function, you should definately let them know.

I'm finished with my rant. On to more organized functions :)...

I just called bids at the annual Ledbetter Fireman's Feast. Those folks have it together. Nothing beats these little small towns where I grew up. REALLY...I mean that. Overwhelming support & a GREAT bunch of people. They even put steps beside the trailer, so I could haul my ROLY POLY self on up there :).

Me calling bids, Uncle Mele & Mr. Larry Nickel watching the crowd.

Uncle Mele callin' bids & me bein' all pregnant, being emcee & watchin' the crowd.

Hey! Hey! One more thing....being 8 months pregnant doesn't stop me! Here I am with some of my Gal Pals at the 2012 Fall Junk Prom :). No CrAzY shenannigans this time & I headed to the house a little earlier than usual, but still had a BLAST. Junk Gypsies need to open up that store ALREADY :)!

Shannon, Kacie, Little Britches Kylee, & Myself & Baby Heath in the Chandelier tent :).

Shannon, Me, Chelsey, & Kacie @ Zapp Hall.

If you need some help judging the weight of market livestock, selling baked goods, puttin' an auction together, or gettin' all GLAMMED up for Junk Prom...shoot me an email, leave me a comment, give me a call. More EXCITEMENT to come...if you can believe it.......

BUCK UP BABY & Do your best to do it RIGHT or don't do it at all!

-Heather Schoenst Kaspar
TXL#17037