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An Evening for Antelope
The second annual Arizona Antelope Foundation fundraising banquet took place on Saturday evening, August 6, 2005. For the second year in a row we tested fate and chose an August date
in the middle of vacation season and early hunts. But in spite of that, and facing other seasonal odds stacked against us, 235 dedicated and generous supporters of antelope turned out for a thoroughly
enjoyable evening. Leo Balthazor and the El Zaribah Shrine Auditorium provided an excellent buffet dinner and Darla Bardelli, the Master of Ceremonies, kept the evening moving well. Darla is the host of
the radio show “OutdoorsArizona”.
As people came in to door, each received a free gift: a soft-sided camo coffee mug with the AAF logo emblazoned on the side. We wanted to be sure to provide a quality gift for each of the antelope
supporters who took time out of their busy schedules to attend!
300 balloons were on sale by the door, everyone with a prize inside. We sold every balloon and auctioned off the final bundles of red, white and blue balloons to the highest bidders. They were popped by
color and winners claimed a variety of prizes.
A lovely ladies raffle was spread out over several tables containing over 65 beautifully wrapped gifts designed to please the members of the more attractive gender. Every raffle ticket won a prize and all were
sold without difficulty. In fact, there was a rush to the table when Darla announced that the last few were going to be sold!
The bucket raffle took up an entire wall and featured nearly 50 items! Of course, the 18 firearms were hotly contested as were the scopes, range finders, binoculars, etc. The raffle girls were busy!
While this was continuously going on throughout the evening there were other raffles which included the tent package, rifle raffle and the Jimmy “Hussey 500” which awarded $500 cash to the winner.
Before we get to the auctions, let’s talk about the blitz’s. Blitz #1 was a special edition AAF logo cap distributed on two colors: black and stone. Hats went for $20 each and every one contained at
least $20 in bucket raffle tickets. 250 caps were sold in about 4 minutes! These special caps will be available through the AAF on an ongoing basis if you missed out ($15 but no raffle tickets!).
Blitz #2, #3 and #4 were all “pick-a-price” blitzes. Winners got a chance to pick from a pool of high value prizes including firearms, archery equipment, optics and a lifetime Arizona hunting and fishing
license. The items were so good we gave three chances to the crowd.
Okay, we need to talk about the auctions. The two silent auctions containing over 50 items each were arranged to entice the bidders. As usual, there were many desirable prizes and some great deals!
The silent auction areas were crowded the whole evening with interested bidders trying to outmaneuver each other to win bids. It was great fun!
The live auction is always the highlight of the evening. We had an outstanding auctioneer: Brad Smith from Flagstaff. He did an excellent job presenting each item to the crowd for bid and working the
action – all for the benefit of antelope in the great state of Arizona! 18 hunts and 2 fishing trips highlighted the bidding. But the evening agenda was punctuated by an historic offering of a lifetime
membership in the AAF. Bidding was active, the prize was contested to the end, and the 15th life membership to the AAF was sold at a fine price to Mary Keebler.
Events like this don’t just happen without a lot of sweat and the kind of giving of time and money and talent that just can’t be described. Many gift donors furthered the cause with their gifts (and there are
too many to mention in this short article). But all of their gifts are dearly appreciated! Major donors included Don’s Sport Shop and Sportsman’s Warehouse, Hensley & Company, Phoenix Precast Concrete
Products, and Rep. Jerry Weiers. Their participation was critical!
My name is Bruce Johnson, and as chairman of the 2005 AAF Fundraising Banquet I need to thank my committee members for making this event happen: Ignacio Beltram, Pete & Cathy Cimellaro, Larry & Sharon
Cullen, Leia Florez, Sue Foote, Jerry Guevin, Bill Hook, David Hussey, Don Johnson, Bill & Mary Keebler, Charlie & Linda Kelly, Dave Laird, Warren Leek, Bill Luffy, David McCasland, Jim & Susie Mehen,
Connie & Rose Taylor, Frank & Robin Tennant, Jim, Tracy & Jimmy Unmacht, Jerry Weiers, Chrissy Weiers, and Ron & Karen Yee. The time and sweat and effort these people put forth is what made
this banquet a success. If you see them, thank them!
The banquet was all about antelope and it’s our intent that all the money will go to help antelope on the ground in Arizona. None of the monies received will be wasted and the AAF board will see that every
penny is spent well! Thanks again if you were one of the generous people who attended the banquet and emptied your wallet or purse for the cause! Bruce Johnson AAF Secretary/2005 Banquet
Chairman
Click here to see a list of 2005 Banquet Donors.
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