DOORBUSTERS

Doors open for the silent auction at 5:00 sharp. Remember, the FIRST 75 GUESTS get free parking tonight.  (I assume that means the first 75 cars, or DON'T get behind that VW Beetle with the oversized shoes and red noses sticking out the sunroof because all bets are off.) 


The FIRST 100 GUESTS also get a free signature cocktail. And this time, all those clowns count, so be on time! See you there. 

White Diamonds are to Elizabeth Taylor as Pink Sapphires are to Joanie Quinn

As MC of the St. Clare Auction, I would like to let everyone know that I am taking this job very seriously.  I have devoted hours upon hours (this week) writing new material, honing jokes, and researching our staff and auction team (between High School/Middle School/3rd grade Basketball Tournaments, a Teacher Luncheon this week, swim lessons, French lessons, a comedy show, a Bingo-calling/Fundraiser event, an out-of-town husband, and one home haircut.)  Remember, I LIVETIRED in order to make the auction evening an entertaining one for everyone.  

Also, in preparation, I have invested more money in undergarments than outergarments.  Please compliment them that night so that I can justify this expense to my husband.

What can I say about Debbi Monahan, Nancy Melzer, Fr. Charles, or the two Dad dudes chairing this years auction?  Probably a lot - but I'm limited time-wise due to anxiousness about paddle numbers flying and lots of oral packages to move along...so don't be surprised if I slip in my hilarious jokes here and there - pay close attention, pay very close attention.  I may or may not have dirt to share.   

One of the best things about MC'ing the auction is I get to wear REAL jewels (not my plastic sparkly tiara!) during the silent auction - pink sapphire diamond earrings and necklace (donated by Kassab Jewelers, Oral Auction Package 42.)  I am honored to have some bling to swing!

Hope to see you there!!!

Joanie

T-3 days: The Blog Staff Gets Punchy

And now it's time for a feature we like to call "Dragon Facts with Tricia Leishman...."

DRAGON FACT!

A Google search of the terms “Are Dragons Real?” returned about 77,000,000 results in 0.18 seconds. An excerpt: Yes, they are very real. However, they are no longer living in this dimension. They did at one time but for reasons ("reasons" not provided) they had to leave this dimension. People have seen then them but often when they are drunk.” So if you see a dragon after the auction, make sure someone else is driving. 

DRAGON FACT!

This year’s theme “Year of the Dragon: Get Fired Up” is based on Chinese astrology, which assigns each person an animal corresponding to the year they were born. Cool for DRAGONS, not so cool for PIGS like me.

DRAGON SURVEY RESULTS!

A randomly selected sample of St. Clare Students were asked what they would name our mascot, the St. Clare Dragon: 

• Male: Honey, Patrick
• Female: Honey, Fallon, Susie 
• Gender Neutral: Lucky, Buddy, Shoehorn

DRAGON RHYME!

Just to get you in the spirit of the evening, I have rewritten "The Tyger" by William Blake as "The Dragon:"

Dragon! Dragon! Bidding bright!

At the auction on this night  

Which immortal parent friends 

Will save thee when thou overspends?

DRAGON FACT!

Here is a fact I am FIRED UP about! An auction item I suggested was simply ignored. It did not even receive the courtesy of a rejection. Pre-signed tardy slips. Wouldn’t you pay top dollar to avoid that walk of yellow-slipped shame? 

DRAGON FACT!

In the New Testament, the devil takes the form of a red dragon with seven heads and ten horns in his battle against Archangel Michael. And so clearly, it is the perfect Catholic school auction theme. 

Drop EVERYTHING. The catalogue is online.

Can you stop yourself from reading it right this second? 
Go ahead. 
Try. 
I dare you. 
Don't read it. 
 
I knew you couldn't do it. That's okay. 
I couldn't do it either. 
Let's click here to get our grubby little hands on it. 

Time to get serious, auction people, and talk post-party

You've got the babysitter, you're all dressed up, it's 10:00. WAY too early to go home... Let's start talking post-auction party. 


As exciting as it is to try a new auction venue, I am not alone in mourning proximity to the PPAA - site of some fabulous post-auction shenanigans.  And so I put it out there to you...where will you be taking the after-party this year? 


Consider the Driftwood Room at the Hotel Deluxe, half a block away. Kinda lounge-that-time-forgot, but also kinda Mad Men.  Or use local transit to change the scene - hoof it over 405, hop on the street car and head to the Pearl (after all, WWNRD can also mean WHERE Would Nancy Richman DRINK?) Or do shady customers and surly bar-keeps await you at the Commodore Lounge 2 blocks away?

Other suggestions? The floor is open...?

Why we should have a parish picnic with a bouncy obstacle course again....

At last year’s auction, everyone got the chance to hear a moving reflection from school parent Tricia Leishman about how tuition assistance has changed her life. Tricia told us all how much better off she and her smart and adorable daughter are because they are part of our school community through tuition assistance.

But that’s just part of the story. See, I would say that while tuition assistance is certainly a gift to the recipient, it may be a greater gift to the rest of us whose lives are enriched by those the Holy Spirit blows our way.  And I will make this case by telling you how much better my life is with Tricia and her daughter in it.

I met Tricia volunteering at the parish picnic in 2010. She was memorable because she had somehow drawn the worst volunteer job ever as “bad cop” on an inflatable obstacle course full of second grade boys. She was actually crazy good at keeping those boys in line. As a “bad cop” myself, I asked if she needed help. “No,” she said, “My shift is almost up and someone is going to relieve me.” That someone NEVER CAME. But she just kept kicking those 2^nd grade behinds – for hours – all in the name of safety, while her poor daughter huddled on the shady side of the obstacle course, hoping no one would associate her with the crazy lady who just kicked my daughter off.

Fast forward to Bingo night. “Oh look, it’s that bad cop again!” There she was, monitoring prizes. Again, no relief shift. Again, no complaining.  She just kept working.

As our kids became good friends, I had more and more opportunity to spend time with those Leishman ladies, and have learned that despite trying to cultivate a rep as a saucy gal, Tricia pretty much never says a bad word about anyone. She is unfailingly charitable to others and really, really good with kids. She volunteers to help when she can’t, she donates money when she shouldn’t, she helps me when she has no business doing it. She talks about her faith more than any other friend I have, and lives it every single day. There is a lot of Jesus talk coming from that one.

And her funny, wry, wise daughter is one of a very short list of reasons my son manages to get himself to school every day, despite the fact that you have to do both sitting AND writing there.

So when I raise my paddle up to support tuition assistance at the auction, I am totally doing it to help other families like theirs have access to an outstanding Catholic education. And to help anyone who might lose their job or their house or their spouse stay with us as long as they would like. But I have to admit, my life would be much more drab and much less hilarious without my friend Tricia, and I am thankful that the gift of tuition assistance brought her to us. 

-- Colleen O'Mahony

Why we should definitely have a parish picnic with a bouncy obstacle course again....

At last year’s auction, everyone got the chance to hear a moving reflection from school parent Tricia Leishman about how tuition assistance has changed her life. Tricia told us all how much better off she and her smart and adorable daughter are because they are part of our school community through tuition assistance.

But that’s just part of the story. See, I would say that while tuition assistance is certainly a gift to the recipient, it may be a greater gift to the rest of us whose lives are enriched by those the Holy Spirit blows our way.  And I will make this case by telling you how much better my life is with Tricia and her daughter in it.

I met Tricia volunteering at the parish picnic in 2010. She was memorable because she had somehow drawn the worst volunteer job ever as “bad cop” on an inflatable obstacle course full of second grade boys. She was actually crazy good at keeping those boys in line. As a “bad cop” myself, I asked if she needed help. “No,” she said, “My shift is almost up and someone is going to relieve me.” That someone NEVER CAME. But she just kept kicking those 2^nd grade behinds – for hours – all in the name of safety, while her poor daughter huddled on the shady side of the obstacle course, hoping no one would associate her with the crazy lady who just kicked my daughter off.

Fast forward to Bingo night. “Oh look, it’s that bad cop again!” There she was, monitoring prizes. Again, no relief shift. Again, no complaining.  She just kept working.

As our kids became good friends, I had more and more opportunity to spend time with those Leishman ladies, and have learned that despite trying to cultivate a rep as a saucy gal, Tricia pretty much never says a bad word about anyone. She is unfailingly charitable to others and really, really good with kids. She volunteers to help when she can’t, she donates money when she shouldn’t, she helps me when she has no business doing it. She talks about her faith more than any other friend I have, and lives it every single day. There is a lot of Jesus talk coming from that one.

And her funny, wry, wise daughter is one of a very short list of reasons my son manages to get himself to school every day, despite the fact that you have to do both sitting AND writing there.

So when I raise my paddle up to support tuition assistance at the auction, I am totally doing it to help other families like theirs have access to an outstanding Catholic education. And to help anyone who might lose their job or their house or their spouse stay with us as long as they would like. But I have to admit, my life would be much more drab and much less hilarious without my friend Tricia, and I am thankful that the gift of tuition assistance brought her to us. 

-- Colleen O'Mahony

A SmartBoard Skeptic Raises Her Paddle

I have to say, I was something of a skeptic when SmartBoards entered the classrooms at St. Clare. I thought, what can they do that a white board, a VCR and a stack of National Geographics can’t do?

Then we started teaching Science Club in the 2^nd grade classroom. And I realized that SmartBoards really change the way I teach for the better. It’s amazingly engaging to have the capacity to access Bill Nye or David Attenborough to make a point, or instantly show footage from the Mars Rover or an octopus camouflaging itself miles undersea. It’s also a really efficient way for all kinds of learners to access information, beyond a one-dimensional lecture or worksheet.

This year’s targeted paddle bid takes this SmartBoard technology to the next level, building upon the basic framework to keep our classroom learning dynamic and multisensory, pulling all kinds of learners into lessons in memorable and exciting ways.

The paddle bid is designed in three tiers:

* Level One adds media tables and document cameras to all existing classroom SmartBoards.

* Level Two adds a SmartBoard to the Art room (I can’t believe there isn’t one there already!) and sound bars to existing classroom set-ups.  (Trust me, they NEED those sounds bars! Those kids are really good about being quiet during video clips but come on.)

*Level 3 adds tablets for each SmartBoard with an app to control the SmartBoard, and the “many millions of other things that one could use it for with students,” as Mr. Irlbeck says. 

Used well, this technology will make learning richer and more accessible to all of our students. I can raise my paddle for that!

– Colleen O’Mahony