By Ulrika O’Brien: I confess when I first sat down at the cashiers’ table, I felt a degree of trepidation. As I surveyed the crowd across the dim and smoky haze in Guinan’s, it seemed to me that most fans present were there to drink and weren’t terribly interested in our little proceedings. But from the moment Andy Hooper took the mic, the auction rolled along at a spanking pace with brisk and lively bidding and much jollity. It was a good time, and made good money.
Final auction sales came to $1870.00, divided thus:
TAFF: $747.00
DUFF: $1,101.00
GUFF $22.00
Checks to TAFF and DUFF sitting administrators will be sent out this week; GUFF funds have been disbursed.
There were a lot of heroes who made this auction so successful, and I will probably manage to forget someone because it was a long and busy convention but here goes:
AUCTIONEERS
- Andy Hooper
- Jerry Kaufman
- Norman Cates
PREP AND RUNNERS
- Randy Byers
- Andrew P. Hooper
- Tom Becker
- Scott K.
- Nina Horvath
Especially the super-helpful Kelly Buehler, who was originally only there to run the sound board and stepped up like a champ.
ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT
- Carrie Root
- Mark Plummer
- Claire Brialey
- She who would rather not be named on the internet
And of course a gigantic shout out of thanks to everyone who donated auction goods, and everyone who came and bid and bought our stuff. You guys are all TOTALLY AWESOME.
Humbly submitted: Ulrika O’Brien, TAFF ‘98
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I am glad that we raised so much money in the auction. Thanks to all who made this possible! – And you can remove the question mark after my name. I was there.
Were individual items auctioned off to fund different fan funds or was everything auctioned off and the funds divided according to a formula?
Mike Kerpan: Certain items were auctioned for the benefit of one fund, some were auctioned for “united fan funds” which I took to mean the proceeds would be divided.
What is taff, guff, and the other one?
TAFF=Trans Atlantic Fan Fund
GUFF=Get Up and over Fan Fund
DUFF= Down Under Fan Fund
Johnny: Thanks for adding the key!
Just in case “Guess” (or others unaware of the traditions of my fandom) do not want to bother to look it up, the various “Fan Funds” are elective things, every year or so, usually administered by the two past winners (who are also major fund-raisers), to send a fan (sometimes fan & spouse) to a distant convention, partly as an Award for past services, partly to serve as a Representative of the local area and in expectation of future (non-monetary) contributions to fandom.
It usually covers (economy-class) airfare, food & walking-around money during the Con, Membership & room expenses if the ConCom doesn’t cover these (most do, I think), and sometimes a little extra for travelling-around to visit other fans in the host country.
Voting usually involves contributing some small sum of money — often c. $5 — and I suppose the Puppies _could_take it over and goudge out a bit of money,., at the cost of any good-will feelings they might have left in fandom.
For the curious, there’s more information on the oldest fund at the unofficial TAFF site, taff.org.uk.
I’m finally awake enough now to submit one small correction: There’s an H missing from Kelly Buehler’s name. She was area head for the cabaret, and the angel of the fan fund auction.
I was thrilled to drop a little money and pick up a signed paperback by Wilson ‘Bob’ Tucker, and the big prize: First edition of Bug Jack Barron, inscribed by Norman Spinrad to First Fan Art Widner, donated by Art’s estate for the Fan Fund Auction. You REALLY ought to go to the auction in KC next year and check out the goods.