“Difficult” economy notwithstanding, the 10th Mask Project and Gala did better than Just OK. Figures released today indicate that 1,200 friends of The Denver Hospice attended the May 31 gala, raising an amount just shy of $1 million.
The attendance tied that of the gala’s first year, and the money represented proceeds from the online auction of 570 masks; sponsorships; and ticket sales for the gala held at Cherry Creek Shopping Center.
The Mask Project had record corporate sponsorships of $432,000 — a 22% increase over 2006. The Mask Project is held every other year.
What this proves, says The Denver Hospice spokeswoman Lynn Bronikowski, is that companies are willing to put money into cause marketing, even during challeging economic times.
The online auction of masks, she added, raised $100,000. That figure tied the record but was achieved with fewer masks: 570 in the 2008 gallery vs. Top sellers included the Democrats’ presumptive presidential nominee Barack Obama, whose mask sold for $4,400; actor Robert Redford’s creation that went for $2,300; President George W. Bush’s $1,700 mask; and actor George Clooney’s, which fetched $1,100.
Live bidding at the gala was conducted by Gary Corbett, who extracted $70,000 from friends of Steve Chotin in exchange for “The Heavens Smile,” a mask created by Charles Wooldridge that was a true work of art.
The mask was hand fabricated from a mixture of glass, zinc, brass and silver. The glass mixture is a compound of 15% black epoxy that is ground down with diamond pads and polished to create the effect of a starry night. The protruding, smiling face is sculpted to suggest that even in the midst of all that is happening in our lives and the universe around us, there is joy and happiness. Joy is a choice that can be alive, in us through us and around us.
This is the fourth time that Chotin has supported The Denver Hospice in a major way by calling on business colleagues and friends to join together for a collective bid. What started as an idea to create a team bid and generate interest among Chotin Group employees in 2002 has since evolved into a national request for help. Chotin sends letters to everyone he knows, inviting them to contribute to this charitable event, and they respond with enthusiasm.
Since 2002, the Chotin participation has contributed $260,000 to the cause.
“These are challenging economic times, and it certainly is a different world than it was two years ago,” Chotin says. “That’s why I’m so grateful for the outpouring of generosity that allows us to continue our support for The Denver Hospice.
“All of us, at one time or another, are faced with the impending death of a loved one,” he adds. “To know there are programs like The Denver Hospice that provide comfort and support to individuals and families during a most difficult time provides great solace. I’m honored that so many friends and business associates chose to give again to support such a worthy and deserving cause.”
Major contributors were The Chotin Group; The Chotin Foundation; Steve and Robin Chotin; the Tuchman Family Foundation; MDC Holdings; Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck; Jeff and Carole Schwartz; Mr. and Mrs. Tom Marano; Mr. and Mrs. James Lustig and C.L.F.S., Ltd.; Norm and Sunny Brownstein; Scott and Mauri Zemachson; and Raymond Sutton/ Baker and Hostetler LLP.
A paddle bid special appeal did quite well, too. David and Bonnie Mandarich raised their paddle and gave $25,000 in support of hospice care while others contributed the $100 gifts that auctioneer Gary Corbett said would “buy two tanks of gas for hospice nurses visiting homes.”
KYGO morning host Kelly Ford emceed the gala with Fox-31 anchor Libby Weaver. Speakers included Mickey Ackerman, whose idea it was to have a Mask Project in Denver, and Andrew Hudson, who movingly described what hospice care meant to his family during his mother’s final illness.
Pete and Marilyn Coors were there to see the mask that Pete had painted himself go for $300; Coors CEO Leo Kiely also created a mask and it sold for $2,500.
Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey included a tour for four of the Denver Police Department crime lab with his mask, something that helped bring the selling price to $650.
Frances Owens and daughter Monica arrived by way of the GOP state convention where Monica was elected to be a delegate to the party’s national convention in Minneapolis.
Hospice board member Ned Flanigan turned in the $30,000 high bid to buy the 2008 Harley-Davidson Rocker donated by Rocky Mountain Harley-Davidson. His purchase includes masks from Harley riders ZZ Top, actor Larry Hagman of “Dallas” fame, NASCAR driver Sterling Marlin and Willie G. Davidson, grandson of the founder of Harley-Davidson Motor Company.
Luann and Micky Miller bought the Vespa donated by Erico Motorsports for their granddaughter.
Pictures from the Mask Project Gala can be viewed at denverpost.com/seengallery
Denver Post Society Editor Joanne Davidson can be reached ar 303-809-1314 or jdavidson@denverpost.com