As a community, toy collectors are known for being a
particularly vocal bunch. When images of Michael Bay's Transformers
movie first surfaced a few years ago, outrage at one Transformers news
site was so fierce regarding the signature look of the main villian
Megatron, that ultimately Bay was convinced to change the iconic
character to a more traditional likeness. Fan input from Hasbro's
quarterly Q&A sessions and Mattel's fan polls have been helping to
shape the product lines of these manufacturers for the past few years.
So it's no wonder that when the tragic news came out of Japan regarding
the Sendai Earthquake and aftermath, they would be vocal about that as
well.
Now, this
outspoken group is digging deep to put not only their collective voices,
but their money and talents to good use. As part of the "Heroes Give
Hope" charity auction, collector's and fans of action figures,
superheroes and comic art are joining together to raise funds for
ConvoyofHope.org, a not-for-profit organization providing food, disaster
relief and community outreach to areas affected by disaster. Since
their founding in 1994, Convoy of Hope has served more than 42 million
people in over 100 countries through their international children’s
feeding initiatives, and by providing support both at home and in
communities throughout the world.
Convoy
of Hope is working with TheBigToyAuction.com, using their expertise in
streaming Live-Auctions of action figures to create this charity event.
Their "Heroes Give Hope" Benefit auction event will feature collector
donated and created toys, artwork, and other services from a wide range
of toy lines to be auctioned off in a Live-Auction event. The online
catalog will allow for absentee bidding up to the day of the event, and
the unique streaming technology provided by the Proxibid.com platform
will allow bidders to bid in real-time on the day of the auction from
the comfort of their own computer screens. One hundred percent of the
final hammer price of each item sold will go directly to Convoy of Hope
for their efforts on the ground in distributing much needed food and
supplies to those affected by the disasters in Japan.
"I
think it's great that we're able to bring the collecting community
together to do this," says Christopher Noon, professional auctioneer and
founder of TheBigToyAuction. "You don't have to be a giant robot or
have superpowers to be a hero. You can be a hero to the people of Japan
Just by bidding on some great toys and art that you would have wanted
anyway." Interested donors, artists, or small business can also help by
donating their collectible toys and related artwork to TheBigToyAuction
for inclusion in the catalog. "It's a great way to share your items
with other collector's willing to bid," says Noon, "not to mention great
exposure for your business or talent." As a fully accredited 501c(3)
organization, donations to the Convoy of Hope may be eligible for
federal tax deductions.
Japan
has had a long history of influencing American toys, comic art and pop
culture. Many popular toy brands today, like Gundam, Pokemon, and
Yu-Gi-Oh were developed in Japan before becoming American favorites.
Director George Lucas gives credit to director Akira Kurosawa's 1958
Japanese film "The Hidden Fortress" as inspiration for his own "Star
Wars" series of films and the over 30 years’ worth of toys it has
subsequently spawned. The Micronauts of the late '70's and early '80's
originally began as the Japanese Microman Line. Similarly, before being
sold in America, most of the early Transformers were sold throughout
Japan as "Diaclones".
To
this day in Japan, the most recognizable of all transformers, the
Autobot leader Optimus Prime, is known by his original Japanese name -
Convoy. And so, after years of seemingly endless contributions to
American toy culture, it seems only fitting that an organization named
Convoy of Hope is able to give back in Japan's time of need. After the
7.0 earthquake that devastated Haiti last year, Convoy was one of the
first humanitarian aid groups to distribute food and supplies to
victims. Now, volunteers from Convoy of Hope are delivering more than
50,000 meals, dried fruit, powdered milk, water, and sanitary and
cooking supplies to those in need in Japan. Considered a “first
responder” organization in disaster relief, with a fleet of
tractor-trailers, a 300,000-square-foot warehouse, a high-tech Mobile
Command Center and a scalable distribution model, Convoy of Hope has
become a model organization for quickly providing resources and help to
victims of disasters worldwide. With one of the highest rankings on
independent charity review sites such as CharityNavigator.org, they have
become known as leaders in getting disaster aid to those that need it
most. “This is a desperate situation and because of our on-going
feeding initiatives in the Philippines we are able to ship food and
resources to the people of Japan much faster,” says Nick Wiersma,
disaster response community service director for Convoy of Hope, “This
is our first shipment, but it won’t be our last.”
Generosity
is nothing new to this group of toy collectors,though. Recently, One of
the major Transformers news websites managed to easily surpass their
$5,000.00 goal for the Hasbro Children's Hospital donation drive in just
one month. Many members sold off figures they had or put aside the
money they would have spent on toys that week to give to the cause. A
smaller toy manufacturer that makes after-market components for Hasbro's
Transformers toys recently gave away 1500 exclusive figures as an
incentive to anyone who made a donation of $15.00 or more directly to
the Red Cross. The figures were given away in just three days, raising
over $20,000 to help the people of Japan. Additionally, many generous
fans, creators, and artists have been creating pieces and selling toys
on sites like eBay to raise money to donate individually to the cause.
Says
Dana Stow, a long time auction-goer and toy-show attendee, "The Great
thing about a Live-Auction like this, though, is that it takes all those
small efforts and combines them into one big one. It eliminates all
the mess of multiple sellers fees that eat into the charity money and it
gives everybody one big effort to rally around. It builds community,
and for the people of Japan, I think that's important right now."
Additionally, donors works will be on display in TheBigToyAuction's
heavily marketed catalog, generating much more exposure for their
talents and products, giving them more exposure, and allowing pre-bids
to rise as word gets out and collectors have time to save up for their
favorite items.
The
Live Auction event kicks off Sunday, July 10th, starting at 3:00 PM
EDT. Registration and Pre-Bidding are already open online at http://TheBigToyAuction.com. Interested Donors can contact TheBigToyAuction.com via their website to donate items for the event.
Convoy
of hope is also accepting donations directly through its website at
ConvoyofHope.org, or by texting TSUNAMI to 50555 to automatically donate
$10.00 to relief efforts.
For information: http://www.TheBigToyAuction.
com or
Contact: news@TheBigToyAuction.com
Phone: 610-997-0165