Community Shares Fundraiser Celebrates Work of 26 Toledo Area Nonprofits

Toledo, OH – June 5, 2015-Northwest Ohio Community Shares celebrated the community work of the 26 nonprofit agencies in its federation on Thursday, June 4, 2015, with its annual Share Our Dreams fundraiser held at St. Clement’s Hall on Tremainsville in Toledo.

Share Our Dreams is the signature fundraiser for Community Shares and features a live and silent auction. This year’s theme was “Music, Magic and Mischief.” The event also featured a $1000 cash raffle, heavy appetizers by Nick & Jimmy’s and Tiger Bakery, homemade desserts, a cash bar, tango demonstrations, and music by DJ Mike Baginski of Decorative Sound.

Local magician Andrew Martin roamed the hall, stopping at tables to perform his incredible sleight-of-hand magic. Balls seemingly appeared and disappeared magically under a cup and specifically named cards magically moved from playing deck to a zippered purse, to the astonishment of his audience. Another form of magic was performed by local artist Aaron Bivins, who painted and framed an entire watercolor portrait of the Marblehead Lighthouse while attendees watched.

Carson Helminiak of Pamela Rose Auction Company served as auctioneer and kept the bidding fast and furious. He obviously enjoyed auctioning off a condo in Ft. Myers, FL, a hot-air balloon ride, a rental home in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, and several other items including Aaron’s finished picture. He even brought members of the audience, who had been high bidders of items in the past or knew about them, to the microphone to tell about them. This seemed to spur the bidding.

Steve Wagener, President of Community Shares, said that “we were fortunate to have Carson as the auctioneer. He livened up the crowd and made the auction a fun event and a good fundraiser for Community Shares.”

The crowd was also wowed by two demonstration dances from the Toledo Tango Club, who made good use of the central dance floor at St. Clement’s with their elegant and sinuous Argentine tangos.

The event raised more than $12,000. Angela Abbatiello, Executive Director of Community Shares and event coordinator, said “expenses were kept to a minimum because of all the sponsors, donated items, and volunteers, so most of the funds raised by the event will benefit the 26 agencies in our federation.”

Founded in 1997, Community Shares is northwest Ohio’s only workplace-giving federation with a focus on social justice, health and human services, animal welfare, the arts and the environment. The local nonprofit organizations in the federation have a common goal of improving life in the greater Toledo area. The main goal of Community Shares is to provide increased funding and community exposure for its member organizations.

The workplace campaigns run by Community Shares give employees more choices in charitable giving and raise much-needed funds for their nonprofits. They also provide a means for member nonprofits to connect with area employees, sharing their stories and volunteer opportunities. Funds raised at Share Our Dreams underwrite a major portion of workplace-campaign expenses.