2009 Charity Auction  ◊   Charity Submissions  ◊   2009 Blood Drive

2009 Dragon*Con Charity Auction

Director: John Tackett

Imagine visiting your mother on Christmas day and not have her know who you are. How about watching your grandfather, who was once a master violinist, just sit and stare at his violin unable to even figure out what it is. Or an uncle, who holds 3 electronic patents, lying in bed in a fetal position unaware of the world around him. For me I do not have to imagine it.. it is real life.

As the director of Charity Events for Dragon*Con, I am proud to announce that this year’s charity auction will benefit the Georgia Chapter of the American Alzheimer’s Association.  Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive and fatal brain disease. As many as 5.3 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer's destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking and behavior severe enough to affect work, lifelong hobbies or social life. Alzheimer’s gets worse over time, and it is fatal. Today it is the sixth-leading cause of death in the United States.

It is the most common form of dementia, a general term for the loss of memory and other intellectual abilities serious enough to interfere with daily life. Alzheimer’s disease accounts for 50 to 70 percent of dementia cases. It has no current cure, but treatments for symptoms, combined with the right services and support, can make life better for the millions of Americans living with Alzheimer’s. There is an accelerating worldwide effort under way to find better ways to treat the disease, delay its onset, or prevent it from developing. For more information on this devastating disease please visit http://www.alz.org/georgia/.

I am inviting all guests, attendees and programming tracks of Dragon*Con 2009 open up their wallets (and their programming schedules) and help us raise money for this worthwhile organization. Some of the items we currently have are; a signed hardback copy of Brisingr by Christopher Paolini; collectible Star Wars Action Figures, including the Lucas Family Action Figures; and autographed pictures from past D*C guests. But we need more to help make this year’s event a success.  We are looking for donations for this year’s auction, especially collectibles, one of a kind, or autographed items. If you would like to donate to this year’s auction, please contact John Tackett at charityevents@dragoncon.org.

On behalf of the conventions and the Charity Events staff, I just want to also say thanks to all that have made the Dragon*Con charity events successful in the past years. In the past 2 years we have raised over $40,000 for the American Diabetes Association and the American heart Association. We have also collected over 1500 pints of blood in our annual blood drive. In fact the blood drive last year won a national award for the creativity of the event. Let’s keep the streak going for 2009.

John Tackett
Director of Charity Events

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Charity Submissions

Coming Soon!

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2009 Dragon*Con Blood Drive

2008 marked the 6th year of the "Pay It Forward" Blood Drive at Dragon*Con, sponsored by The Heinlein Society and LifeSouth Community Blood Center.

Robert A. Heinlein, the man who started the tradition of science fiction convention blood drives at MidAmericon back in 1976, believed very strongly in blood donation and in giving to the community in general, in his words, "paying it forward." In addition to a lifetime of writing, this is part of the marvellous legacy he left us.

The success of this drive is a reflection of the wonderful generosity of the Dragon*Con community and a fitting tribute to the man who gave so much of himself to his SF family.

This year's blood drive will be held in the Marriott, on the Atrium Level (A701) and (A702). The hours for donation are as follows:

• Fri - 10am - 7pm
• Sat - 10am - 7pm
• Sun - 10am - 7pm
• Mon - 9am - 3pm

Our goal for this year's drive is 1200 units! Plese help us to continue Robert Heinlein's legacy.

"Everything is theoretically impossible, until it is done."  ~ Robert A. Heinlein

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