Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Dear Radical Jewelry Makeover Supporters,


This was the first time in the history of Radical Jewelry Makeover that we reached out for individual support and we are grateful for all of the kind words and generous donations that you have shared and given.

This past weekend we faced a challenging question. Would we realistically be able to raise $16,500 by midnight on May 1st? We are incredibly appreciative for the outpouring of support that we have received from you and we do not want to let you down. Therefore, we have chosen to reduce our fundraising goal on the USA Project Site to $10,500. We’ll still need to rally support during the next 5 days, but by setting a new target we will be more likely to reach our goal and your support will go where you intended it to go.

On our end, we will make up the $6,000 difference by finding creative solutions so that we can cut some items from our budget and by doing additional fundraising. We will seek foundation grants and continue asking for individual support through the Ethical Metalsmiths online donation page, which is always open. Also, the NM edition will generate funds through the sale of Makeover jewelry, which will be used to make up the difference.

It is because of your support that Radical Jewelry Makeover VI – Santa Fe, NM is in a great position to be a truly memorable project. During these last 5 days of fundraising through the USA Artists Project Site it is great to know that we have your support. Thank you. We look forward to celebrating with you on May 2nd after we have reached our goal!! We still have $2,020 to go. Please make a donation today.

In appreciation of your support,

Christina and Susie

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Collecting Radical Jewelry Makeover Testimonials!

Dear Radical Jewelry Makeover Supporters and Past Participants,

We are inviting you to share what it is that you like about the Radical Jewelry Makeover and if you have donated to the upcoming project in Santa Fe, why you did so. We are posting two heartwarming testimonials below. The first is from a supporter and the second a past participant + supporter and both comments were voluntarily shared with us this week.

Feel free to use the comment section here to add your comments or you can use the Ethical Metalsmiths Facebook page. Looking forward to hearing from you! Plus, Click Here to donate.

From Ava Chan - RJM-NM Donor
Congratulations on this upcoming iteration of RJM. It's so wonderful this project has occurred in several cities and influenced the thinking of potential customers and hundreds of metalsmiths to think about their sources of material. Very cool how you've integrated organizing and art! I look forward to seeing the gallery of items that results from Santa Fe.

From Brittany Hartman - student participant during RJM-II - Lancaster, PA.
Hey Christina, I'm just glad I was able to pull some money together to donate, I wish it could have been more, but I know every little bit counts. I'm doing my best to try and get others to donate because I really want you guys to reach your goal. I would love to see the project continue to grow and for others to be able to enjoy the same experience I had when I participated in RJM at Millersville. It's one thing to see what comes out of the project, but its a completely different thing to actually be a part of it and really become aware of ethical sourcing of materials. And besides that, RJM is an amazingly awesome fun project that I wouldn't want anybody to be denied the chance of experiencing!

Ava and Brittany, thanks so much for your support and kind words!

Friday, April 22, 2011

ONLY 9 Days Left to raise $8,150 more for RJM - NM!!

Meeting the halfway point on a major fundraising effort that has already garnered the support of 85 donors is well worth a celebration. Thank you to everyone of you that have given so far. We really couldn't be doing this important work without your support.

Radical Jewelry Makeover - Santa Fe, NM is going to be a fantastic and eye opening, awareness building event for all of us. The project planning is coming along and once the spring semester is over, we look forward to bringing the entire Radical Jewelry Makeover - Santa Fe, NM team together for a "next steps" conference call.

In the meantime we have $8,150 to raise before midnight on May 1st, just 9 days away!

Click here to access the link to a video about the project and to donate (remember that your donations are tax deductible.

The list of 85 supporters below deserve a special thanks for their financial gifts. We are grateful for YOUR generosity and we're confident that because RJM is a celebrated project and because it already has your vote of confidence we can reach our final goal of $16,500! We promise to spend it wisely so that we can get the biggest, longest term benefit from your investment.

Thank you, and have a wonderful weekend.

THANK YOU TO:
Neal Anderson, Christine Clark, Sonya Clark, G Harker, Nick Tucci, HYART Gallery, Ann Lovell, Sarah Holden, ProVisions Productions, M Missner, Sandra C Close, Sylvia Richardson, Dennis and Naomi Bahcall, Agnes Ganch, Jennifer Bueno, Amy Tavern, Tracy Featherstone, Ardis Bartle, Erika Miller, Lois Boardman, Allison A. Dahle, Gail M Brown, Tom Spleth, Anna Hepler, Sarah Filzen, Amy Bacon, Tim McCreight, Liz Clark, Caitie Sellers, Tom Joyce, Ava Chan, Peggy Jo Donahue, Quirk, Kelly, Santi Matthews, Kathleen W Kennedy, Candace Beardslee, Harry Sellers, Meg, Whitney Couch, Helen Carnac, Patty Nelson, Arthur Hash, Kim Thomson, Susan Iverson, Jason Hackett, Gina Pankowski, Sarah Loertscher, Kristine Krissy Sack, Mary Cox, Carrie Frye, LTP, Aria Remer, Martha D. Kennedy, Julie Sanford, Rob Jackson, Anne C Dahle, Dan Ganch, Namita Wiggers, Stephanie Voegele, Heather Schlupp, Will P., Kiff Slemmons, Soyeon Kim, Sayumi, Erin Williams, Lisa Norton, Jen Townsend, LeBrun Frye, M'lou Brubaker, Mary Beth Owen-Zdanski, Brigid, Gary Schott, Brittany H, zumbrumdm, SP, Tim Bowring, Hoss Haley and seven anonymous donors.