2019 Concert Countdown: Can’t Miss Auction Items

Each year our Silent Eco-Auction features unique eco-experiences and items. This year’s auction boasts 37 items including one really big, tremendous, gorgeous work of art that has to be seen to be appreciated.

Auction Item 37: Swallow-tailed kite table

Donated by Dick Anderson and Lucas Century

To call this item unique is an understatement.

The collaboration is astounding. Dick Anderson has contributed unique art in the past and his shark surfboard, tiki dude, and driftwood great blue heron have been hugely popular auction items.

This year, he found driftwood to make a table base, then salvaged a glass-table top. Then artist Lucas Century stepped in.

Luc, a Sanibel-island resident and world-renowned artist behind the etching of the names on the Vietnam War Memorial Wall in Washington DC, used a sandblasting technique to etch the image of a swallow-tailed kite into the reclaimed glass table top.

The result is a one-of-a-kind art piece that has attracted the interest of birders and collectors of Luc’s pieces.

Auction 8: Eastern Screech Owl Box and Auction Item 9: Eastern Bluebird Box

Donated by Brian Beckner/Native Birdboxes

Brian Beckner’s handcrafted birdboxes are so wildly popular they go quickly as buy-it-now items after the auction opens. Why? The craftmanship is supberb and Beckner pays attention to details, including making the box resistant to predators but also easy to clean when the chicks have fledged. His boxes are used at golf courses across SWFL and in many residential neighborhoods.

Auction Item 10: Swamp Buggy Ride for 10 at Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Donated by Ed Carlson, CREW Trust Trustee

This item usually receives the highest bids each year. It’s a unique opportunity to tour Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary and hear the stories behind the sanctuary. Ed Carlson helped install the original boardwalk at the sanctuary and is the former executive director. He is a current trustee for the CREW Trust and generously donates this experience each year to our silent eco-auction.

Auction Item 17: Birthday hike for 12 at the CREW Marsh Trails

Donated by the CREW Trust

Deer in party hats aren’t really part of this package, but you are certainly welcome to wear celebratory headgear when you and 11 friends hit the Marsh trails for a birthday hike led by a member of the CREW Staff or a CREW Trust volunteer naturalist. Included is a gift certificate for 12 delicious cupcakes from Cherie’s Sweet Treats, a 2018 and 2019 CREW Concert food vendor. This item was popular at last year’s auciton and we’re excited to see its return!

Auction Item 23: Passion for Painting at CREW Experience

Donated by CREW Trustee Kim Ruiz

If you love the serenity of nature and the CREW trails and want to let some of that emotion flow out onto canvas, this the perfect plein air painting package for you! The winning bidder and three guests will join Kim Ruiz for up to 4 hours at the CREW Marsh Trail campsite to create a painting that is uniquely theirs. This experience includes instruction and art supplies.

You can view the rest of our Silent Eco-Auction items on our auction preview page.

To bid on any of the auction items, purchase a ticket to our concert on Saturday, February 16. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the gate. The silent auction opens at 5:30 p.m. and ends at 8:15 p.m., with payment and item pick-up beginning at 8:30 p.m. All proceeds of the 2019 CREW Concert Under the Stars will go towards the Dr. David R. Cooper Eduation Fund.

 

Become a sponsor of our 2019 CREW Concert Under the Stars!

Brenda Brooks, executive director of CREW Land & Water Trust, with Kim Ruiz, CREW Trust Board of Trustees member and presenting sponsor of the 2018 CREW Concert.

Our concert is our biggest fundraiser each year and this year we hope is no exception. Proceeds help fund the CREW Trust’s environmental education programs but this year we’re changing things up a bit and all proceeds will go towards the Dr. David R. Cooper Education Fund.

Most of our sponsors have been supporting this event for years and we couldn’t have such a successful event without their support.

Sponsors enjoy special perks, including tickets to the VIP Cafe at the concert. This special area, exclusively for VIP ticket holders and their guests, offers table seating close to the stage at Riverside Park and a fully catered meal from Niko’s Kitchen.

For most of our sponsors, though, sponsoring this event is about so much more than great food and the atmosphere of the VIP Cafe.

“I originally sponsored the CREW concert to give back to the place where I first learned Southwest Florida wildflowers,” explained Kim Ruiz, CREW Trust member, Trustee, volunteer and member of the concert committee. In 2018, Kim’s company, EcoPlanz Inc, was the presenting sponsor for the CREW Concert. “I continue sponsoring to support the expanding educational programs so people of all ages can be immersed in the wonders of water, land, and wildlife.”

Brian Farrar, Vice-Chairman of the CREW Trust Board of Trustees, President of BCF Management Group, CREW Trust member and concert committee member, has also been a sponsor for many years. “Being a CREW Concert sponsor has afforded my wife and I the opportunity to give back to our Southwest Florida community in what we believe is one of the most important ways: educating our future leaders on the importance of water resources and environmental preservation. If we don’t explain this need and delicate balance, our wonderful way of life will be gone before we know it.”

If you are looking for a way to support the concert and help us build the Dr. David R. Cooper Education Fund, please consider becoming a concert sponsor and enjoy the event as a VIP! Download a 2019 CREW Concert Sponsor Flyer or email brenda@crewtrust.org for more information on becoming a sponsor.

 

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