Mel B Auctions Spice Memorabilia

Auction-goers hunting for lots of celebrity memorabilia are in for a Scary surprise.

Spice Girl Mel B is selling off the contents of her former home in the UK to the highest bidder during a charity fundraiser.

Now based in LA, the 33-year-old has decided that the time has come to part with some of her most cherished items, including her famous leopard print outfit.

The potential collectibles include a motorbike, baby grand piano, furniture and a toaster that still holds a slice of bread. But by far the most sought-after lots will be from Mel's wardrobe. Five Roberto Cavalli outfits from the Spice Girls' recent reunion tour are up for grabs.

Fans will be able to bid for the original jumpsuit worn during the quintet's first ever public outing in Birmingham, as well as some of the more dignified outfits worn during meetings with the Prince of Wales and Nelson Mandela.

All the monies raised will help children's cancer charity Clic Sargent.

The charity has teamed up with bidding network Buy Once Give Twice and online auction site eBay, for the "once-in-a-lifetime" chance to win a piece of Mel B history.

Mel said: "I hope that people have fun bidding on a piece of me.

"As a mother it was important to me to be a part of an organisation that provides clinical, emotional and financial support to children and young people with cancer, and their families. A spokeswoman for the organisers said it was difficult to estimate how much money would be raised but the charity is expecting a lot of interest in the sale.

The online auction is at www.melbsale.com until Sunday, October 26 at 8pm.

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What might be a fundraising problem?

Though many fundraising ideas are available it is not so easy to decide which one is pertinent and will work the best. There are lots of companies which offer different fundraising ideas for various groups but it is up to you to feel which idea is the best for you.

There is such a traditionally fundraising idea called bake sale when products as chocolates, cookies, candy are sold. There are others which supply pets, books, posters and etc. the idea is clear but the way you are going to get these products to the buyers is to be decided.

Door to door selling has the advantage of meeting people but it can be far from being a pleasant activity especially when some people will show you that you are not quite welcomed.

Direct mail for donations might cost you more than you get because of the expenses: fundraising letters made up properly by a marketing firm, addressed envelopes included for donors to respond.

Donation boxes are the cheapest fundraising strategy but very slowly filled up. Combining some groups together for a common purpose can really work well. Working in one team you can have the united help and skills which will give the best results.

Combining some groups together for a common purpose can really work well. Working in one team you can have the united help and skills which will give the best results.

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Cancer charity's coffee morning plea

MACMILLAN Cancer Support is hoping people in the Ripon area will rally round to make its World's Biggest Coffee Morning event next Friday a huge fundraising success.

Last year more than 50,000 people around the country hosted a coffee morning and raised £7.5m for people affected by cancer.

Macmillan fundraising manager for Ripon, Roohi Lupton, said: "We all like to get together, have coffee and a chat. Well hong money for people affected by cancer at the same time? It's easy just get together with friends, family or colleagues, add a drink of your choice and something tasty to eat and you're part of Macmillan's record-breaking World's Biggest Coffee Morning."

One local supporter preparing to hold a coffee morning in the city next Friday is Mrs Jane Borgen. While previous years have seen Jane and her team hosting events such as a Strawberry Fayre, this year's coffee morning will feature a big prize-draw raffle.

"A lot of people here have had help from Macmillan nurses," said Jane. "We decided to hold a coffee morning as a way of saying thank you."

Roohi Lupton said: "We are extremely grateful to people like Jane for holding a coffee morning and raising money for us. Every day another 780 people in the UK are diagnosed with cancer. This year we're hoping to raise £8.5m to help them, so come on, get the kettle on, stock up on the cakes and biscuits and help make a difference to the lives of people affected by cancer. Every cup really does count."

To register for your free World's Biggest Coffee Morning pack, call 0845 602 1246 or you can visit www.macmillan.org.uk/coffee.

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Credit crunch boosts charity shops

WELL-dressed bargain hunters are driving hundreds of miles to snap up the Cheshire set's cast-offs.

Charity shops in Wilmslow have had record sales as fashionable shoppers buy second-hand clothes by top designers including Gucci, Versace and Chloe. Customers from as far afield as Cornwall and Yorkshire are descending on stores where the seriously rich recycle their unwanted designer labels.

Wilmslow is home to some of the region's wealthiest businessmen and footballers' wives. Shoppers looking to beat the credit crunch can expect to buy a £1,000 Gucci handbag for £300.

The Cancer Research UK store last week had record takings and Oxfam had 'exceptional' sales.
The Help the Aged branch outperformed any other of their outlets in their region. And The British Heart Foundation say they had a 'much better week than last year'.

"People are journeying from all over just to come to the shop," said Sandra Daniels, manager of Cancer Research UK on Water Lane.

"We get a lot from Liverpool, one man comes from Yorkshire and a couple come from Cornwall."

Exceptional

At Oxfam staff reported an 'exceptionally good' Saturday at the end of a good week, which staff put down to the economic climate.

"People tend to come in from out of town - we had someone the other day from Oldham," said one of the shop's volunteers. "I imagine the credit crunch is the cause."

Help the Aged field manager Margaret Gwyther said: "Wilmslow did the best of all the stores in our area and that includes Hale which always does very well." Liz Marsden, assistant manager at Scope, on Church Street, said: "There have been quite a few more customers out and about in the village."

The Wilmslow Business Group thinks any new trade is good news for the town.

Chairman Dave Bolton said: "We are really excited by anything that brings people into Wilmslow. The charity shops in the town have a high standard of clobber and if you are looking to save a few pennies it is a good place to go."

And a spokesman for Macclesfield council said: "It's not unheard of for charity shops to become known as the Harrods of the North and there are sometimes unexpected spin-offs from the `credit crunch'.

"It's encouraging that charity shops in Wilmslow are doing well, helping themselves with attractive window displays, and we'd hope that people continue to support them."

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Charity claims young people with mental problems need input into treatment

Mental health professionals who do not involve young people in their treatment are to be "shamed" in a new charity campaign.

According to children's mental health charity YoungMinds, 97% of mental health professionals, parents and young people believe children should have a say in their treatment. But despite this, the charity says very few are given a chance to contribute. When professionals overlook young people's opinions and concerns when treating them for a mental illness, they seriously underestimate the individual involved, it says. The charity wants to put pressure on workers to make sure young people are consulted. "Young people in general are not always listened to and their views are not always taken into consideration in society in general," says Sarah Brennan, chief executive of YoungMinds. "There is something about having a mental health problem that exacerbates that even more and somehow they are not seen as able to make a reasonable judgement, but of course they can."

Not including a young person in his or her treatment could have a detrimental effect on their health, caused by increased anxiety, refusal to take medications, and distrust of future professionals. She adds that young people are especially affected by the stigma surrounding mental health and should be made to feel comfortable when talking with professionals. The charity, which works with child and adolescent mental health services around the country, wants to launch a national program that will provide training and information, set standards and raise awareness among mental health professionals of the need to include young people in their treatment.

Amy Shaw (not her real name), 13, is part of the children's panel Very Important Kids and advises the charity on mental health issues. Shaw has been receiving treatment for the past year and said she still does not really understand why she needs to take the drugs she does or what they do to help.

"It would be great if there was somewhere that told young people more about medications and different treatments," Shaw says. "Even if a child has a disability or a mental health problem it doesn't mean they are dumb and that they don't understand, it just means they may not take it all in at once and may need it explaining to them again."

David Cottrell, consultant psychiatrist and a psychology lecturer at the University of Leeds, says the inability to include them marks a failure that should be looked at and changed.

"Sometimes professionals just get it wrong and you have to accept that sometimes happens," Cottrell says. "The treatment of young people with mental health needs has been changing, and for the better, but there is definitely still room for improvement."

According to Cottrell, a professional not only has to satisfy the needs of the young person receiving the treatment, but must also take into account the desires of their parents, which are often different and hard to reconcile.

"Many of the young people are in conflict with the adults in their lives and can't agree on the same form of treatment," Cottrell says. "Professionals can try and facilitate discussion between them to understand different points of view, but ultimately, it's the parents who have the final decision."

YoungMinds says that while there is a lot of good practice being carried out, the new campaign would raise awareness about the importance of talking all young people through their treatment, from start to finish.

"If young people understand what's happening they are much more likely to feel a sense of control over their treatment and it can help their success considerably," Brennan says. "If they understand what is going to happen and the consequences of not doing it, they are far more likely to follow the care pathway."

Shaw says a child of any age or ability should be able to decide on their treatment if they are able to understand the seriousness of a condition they may have.

"I think it is very unfair to put a young person in a position where you are choosing their life steps because you think they are incapable," Shaw says. "If most doctors had the patience to sit and listen for a little longer, they would realise that they are underestimating these children."

By Guardian

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7 Most Emotionally Coloured Appeals That Inspire Benefactor to Donate Your Good Cause

To tell you the truth, emotion is the basis of all trade and commerce. Emotions play a great role in the process of decision-making whether you are buying an automobile for yourself, a present for your beloved one or making a donation. We can assure you that fundraising is the most sensitive thing that relies on feeling so much. The way people feel about your appeal the way they reply to your fundraising request. Due to the fact that we human beings are gifted of an unlimited and rich diversity of emotions, sensations, feelings and senses so that we can define some fundamental appeals that work mainly well in fundraising. Here you are to follow 7 of them:

1. Generosity. There are people that are truly philanthropic; some just have self-interested motivations to give. The best approach here is to combine rather delicately altruistic reasons with the other ones. Think that people are better and you get the result you want.
2. Rage. Some emotional matters can lead to feelings of anger. This is a very powerful and influential factor of motivation, but a risky one. If your donation company aimed at anger- spread it all over carefully. Sure you must not slide into fuzzy-wuzzy words. Between the lines your appeal is supposed to be as "This is disgraceful and we are to stop and prevent it!"
3. Fault. Guilt and inconvenience might be your emotional partners in any particular call. In order to make your scenario work and lift desire to grant, you are required to create a persuaded intensity of discomfort about the issue you are suggesting. The idea is that the donor would acquire a guilty feeling if he does not help. Also you can plant “some seeds of guilt” by providing some greeting cards, address labels etc.
4. Horror. Usually this influential feeling works very rapid. Fear leads a person to make a donation thus he protects himself from any misfortunes and diseases in future. It is a complicated method and you have to offer it carefully not to show that is a pure selfish motivation.
5. Ideals. If you have a big inspirational idea, you can express your message in the thesis like "I am ready to change the world" plea. For sure you may say that there are so many cases can be treated as world modifying. You must remember one clever trick is to make your appeal more realistic, believable and convincing than the other ones. That is all here.
6. Eternity. Being children we think that we are immortal and are going to live forever. Being adults we realize that life has its end and will not live eternally. But we have an irresistible desire to try and leave a page in the humankind history. Engraved commemorative inscriptions in a performance vestibule, in black and white names in tabloids, mentions in various charity campaigns and other stuff like this. All these real records of success and triumph give people a sense of accomplishment. These symbols allow you to think of a kind of immortality.
7. Joy. You are free to state that is rather simple to appeal using more negative and self-centered drive for donation. Yes, however there are some people that are happy and have a great feeling of joy being needed, helping others, sharing and giving things, donating money etc. If you appeal on joy factor be sure that it finds its audience. You will see how many times it works and wins.

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Charity shops beating the crunch

Charity shops in the UK seem to have beaten the economic slowdown as shoppers look for value away from the traditional High Street chains.

The profits of the top charity shops rose 7.4% to a total of £106.7m over the past year, according to the Charity Shops Survey 2008. Top of the charity money earners was Oxfam, with profits of more than £21m. The biggest growth came from the Salvation Army, which saw its profits surge 64%. The increases in charity shop profits contrast with falls across the rest of the retail sector as the credit crunch has started to bite. Recent figures from the British Retail Consortium show that retail sales values were down almost 1% from July 2008. Since the credit crunch started, clothing chain Ethel Austin and the shoe retailer Dolcis have gone into administration as shoppers have cut back on spending.

Defying the downturn
But while mainstream retailers have been struggling, some charity outlets have been preparing themselves for an increase in business. David Moir from the Association of Charity Shops said that his members were well placed to buck the economic downturn. "Trading conditions, as for all retailing, are now extremely tough," he said. "However, evidence from previous slowdowns is that charity shops are well placed to weather economic storms as cash-strapped consumers turn to them for value for money." "If charity shops continue to respond to consumer needs, then they are well-placed to come out of this downturn in a good position." he added.

The British Red Cross said in July that it is going to spend £12m over the next five years to improve its charity shops. It plans to open 20 new shops each year until 2012 and refit 140 existing shops.

CHARITY PROFITS

Oxfam £21m

Cancer Research UK £16m

British Heart Foundation £14.4.m

Salvation Army £6.2m

British Red Cross £5.1m

Source: Charity Shops Survey 2008

Via BBC

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