For the (RED) stakeholders in Ghana, Rwanda and Swaziland who receive lifesaving antiretroviral treatment when you make (PRODUCT) RED purchases, Valentine’s Day brought a special gift.
Inspired by the (RED) consumers and partners who’ve already helped generate $60 million for the Global Fund, Damien Hirst persuaded more than 60 of his friends to create or give pieces of their artwork to the (RED) Art Auction, which raised $42.58 million last night. To date (RED) contributions to the the Global Fund now top $100 million.
Bono opened the auction with an a capella rendition of “All You Need Is Love” and later explained to the crowd that these aren't charity pieces given from an artist's back closet – they were specially created to excite and inspire you. "We only want you to buy what you love because love is what (RED) is about," he said. The span of talent was enthralling – from Jasper Johns to Jeff Koons, Banksy to Cecily Brown, Takashi Murakami to Andreas Gursky, and of course, Damien Hirst, who contributed seven works, one of which is titled “All You Need Is Love.”
What will this $100 million mean for (RED) stakeholders? 100% of it will support Global Fund-financed programs, to help eliminate AIDS in Africa. I had the chance to see firsthand the impact of (RED) money when I visited Swaziland with Christy Turlington, to help link the stories between (RED) shoppers and (RED) stakeholders, which Christy shares here:
In Swaziland, Global Fund-financed programs have already provided antiretroviral therapy to more 22,400 people living with HIV/AIDS. When we see how (RED) money improves the lives of people affected by HIV/AIDS in Africa, we also see the importance of keeping (RED) sustainable – whether it’s through our product partners who’ve contributed $60 million due to your purchases, or through inspired moments like the (RED) Auction tonight.
It was a Happy Valentine’s Day, indeed – and a great reminder that we need to keep (RED) growing and connecting with our (RED) stakeholders in Africa.
Xo
Tamsin
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8 comments:
That is unbelievable, that much raised in a day has to be some new record. Congratulations!!
i curled up to the webcast of the auction last night, with a pencil and pad and a prayer that bono's desire for a good $25 million would be met, i thot of last year when we heard his desire for five million to sign up to ONE, and hoped that the people in the room would be there for (red). and i wept, (silly eh?), as i double checked the digits i added that surpassed the goal and more, and now $100 to The Global Fund by (red) brand. and how it can expand exponentially that "middle piece" to scores of worthy people.
that was among the most fun i'd ever had watching rich people spend their money. and this morning the official u2 fansite is loaded with stories of fans who bono stepped out into the street to spend a few minutes with, and i'm happy for them. he's good about that. (never anywhere i'lve been, but hey . . .) but one fan posted something that really registered with me, as posts of envy and praise poured out, he wrote:
"I'm happy just being a fan...I'm not rich enough, nor poor enough to be on Bono's radar ... *laughs* .... and I'm ok with that :)"
and that, to me, is a brilliant perspective on all this, imho. and yet i'm still very proud and strangely personally touched by what he and you all have done here. i can't buy a piece of art, but i'm not in need of a lifesaving med either.
and so many lives will be extended and enriched. thank you so much, bless you all.
forever below the radar, and staying close,
sammi =)
I got so excited with the news that I shared it with my friends and family. Love Red and love Bono. Keep up the amazing job. Love. Ale
Hey Tamsin,
There simply are not words that are adequate enough to express my deepest feelings about this effort.
As someone who now works within the "art world" and as a longtime supporter of our movement to end extreme poverty, this effort by (RED) was of particular interest to me.
I was there that night, waiting outside of Sotheby's, hanging on a hope and a prayer for a successful auction to benefit our (RED) shareholders in Africa.
As the evening was ending,I asked a very nice woman as she departed the building just how much money was raised by the auction.
When she told me that over $42 million had been raised that evening, I literally had to hold back my tears of joy in the bitterly cold evening air but inside I was elated at the success of this endeavor for (RED).
Thank you, dear friends at (RED), for all that you do for the people of Africa.
May your efforts continue to expand in their effectiveness in the years to come.
Take very good care of each other. Blessings always.~
ALWAYS (RED) AT HEART, debbie :)
Hey Tamsin,
There simply are not words that are adequate enough to express my deepest feelings about this effort.
As someone who now works within the "art world" and as a longtime supporter of our movement to end extreme poverty, this effort by (RED) was of particular interest to me.
I was there that night, waiting outside of Sotheby's, hanging on a hope and a prayer for a successful auction to benefit our (RED) shareholders in Africa.
As the evening was ending, I asked a very nice woman as she departed the building just how much money was raised by the auction.
When she told me that over $42 million had been raised that evening, I literally had to hold back my tears of joy in the bitterly cold evening air but inside I was elated at the success of this endeavor for (RED).
Thank you, dear friends at (RED), for all that you do for the people of Africa.
May your efforts continue to expand in their effectiveness in the years to come.
Take very good care of each other. Blessings always.~
ALWAYS (RED) AT HEART, debbie :)
Sammi, in this sport of awareness, you need no money, just a voice. And you my sister have been heard repeatedly by thousands.
You had me at hello.
You insp(RED) many to inspi(RED) many.
God bless you my friend.
PS. I extend the invite to you to travel with me into Uganda this July with H4KI.
ONESpokane
Kiki
Kiki, you're a dear. i hope to work a (red) booth with you at The Gorge this year again before you leave, or even after you return. i thank you for the invite, but while you are on the ground in Uganda i'm being blessed with a scholarship to join friends on Capital Hill to lobby on behalf of those you are with. no way in hell are we going to allow my beloved Child Survival Act, Education for All, and especially after an hour with Adam Smith yesterday, no way is Global Poverty Act be relegated to ground zero for the 111th congress if we all have anything to do with it. yet we'll be together in heart . . . . embrace those kids for me, tell them i love them and we here will do all we can for you and them, for tamsin and agnes and more to improve their lives and futures. you with H4HKids have inspi(red) me and so many . . . . . i will be there in spirit.
i have a friend with a broken heart for an orphanage in Adadome there i believe in the Addis region, if either of you are close to there, find me. TFG rejections mean kids die. i'd love to at least bury him in a (red) tshirt, so he knows we tried. bless your work. some days it seems our our love is like a drop in the ocean.
stay close, stay busy everyone. GPA to senate vote any day now, per Congressman Adam Smith yesterday.
sammi
stay close,
sammi f(red)enburg =)
Since the issue of Uganda has come up, I would like to take this chance to inform my fellow (RED) supporters of another way that they can help to end AIDS and extreme poverty - not on the macro scale but on a micro scale.
There has been a website started to help support a group of HIV+ women in Uganda headed by a woman who should be known by everyONE here. (www.mpwn-uganda.org)
Her name is Agnes Nyamayarwo and she has been called one of the "heroes" of the struggle against AIDS in Africa by none other than Bono.
Like all the (RED) shareholders represented here, Agnes & the women that she works with - the Mulago Positive Women's Network(MPWN)- are all HIV+ women and many of them have children to take care of.
As many of these women may not have easily job marketable skills, many of them live in poverty and make traditional African craft items to sell in order to survive.
The website is a vehicle for the women to tell their stories to the world and to sell their craft items (which are beautiful) in order to help them overcome their poverty.
We hope that you will visit our website, check out the cratfs from Uganda and strengthen your commitment to our movement to make extreme poverty history.
Oh yea - there's even a small (RED) reference on the site. (Agnes did appear in the Vanity Fair issue for RED last Summer.)
Take very good care of each other, dear friends at (RED). Blessings always for you & yours.
ALWAYS (RED) AT HEART, debbie :)
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