Wherever I’m doing a benefit show, I make myself available to do media interviews to help promote the charity and the event.
This was a great interview with Keenan Sanders on Goodmorning Wyoming KTWO for United Way of Natrona County’s Cinco De Michael at the fairgrounds Industrial building. It SOLD OUT and was a super fun night and a successful fundraiser.
I was pretty self-conscious when they wanted to call the event Cinco De “Michael.” But, I am proud that my artwork had raised over a quarter million dollars at two previous events, and helped them gain new sponsors.
Well, I’ve always said my show is the real deal and would work in a field on the top of a milk crate with two boy scouts holding flashlights… I never thought I’d have to prove it but, a while back, I was performing in a clear tent for about 100 people on a very eclectic ranch with a donkey, chickens, and other animals…LOL!
Just as I was about to go to the stage, all the fancy programmed show lighting glitched out. It was pitch black!
My show manager literally put two flashlights on the stage… and we rocked the house or should I say tent. After the show, my art sold for $110,000 to benefit the Glendora Educational Foundation!
Garth Brooks Teammates for Kids Fundraiser was held at Harrah’s Casino and Resort in Kansas City amongst an upscale crowd along with celebrities such as golfer John Daly, and legendary country singer Trish Yearwood, and of course, Garth Brooks. After cocktails and dinner, Michel Israel took the stage and performed three paintings, a portrait of John Daily, one of Trish Yearwood, who would perform later that night in Harrah’s theater, and a fantastic portrait of Garth Brooks. Together with a matching donation, Michael’s artworks raised $400,000 that night!
Before his performance, Michael Israel met Garth Brooks backstage. It was incredible! Garth, a seven-time CMA/ACM Entertainer of the Year, really loves kids and the people everywhere, as does Michael, who has a kind heart and passion for life. After the meeting, Michael took his performance to a whole new level. Performing to some of Garth’s biggest hits. The outpouring of love for the kids, the country music star, and for Michael’s painting was extraordinary. Michael performed to Garth Brooks’s portrait to “Friends in Low Places; it sold for $50,000!
The Fundraiser
The event, the Annual Teammates for Kids, is a signature fundraiser for Teammates for Kids, which raises funds for local children and families in need throughout the Kansas City metro area. Since 1998, Teammates for Kids has provided 4,288 in-need children and families with basic needs, including clothing, meals, car repairs, and rent assistance. Teammates for Kids has grown to become a national non-profit organization that has helped countless families over the years. Teammates for Kids has served more than 5 million people in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, with $216 million raised. Teammates for Kids has impacted more than 1.5 million children directly and helped more than 2 million through community partnerships. View original content with multimedia:http://var/web/site/public_html.prnewswire.
A huge THANK YOU to everyone who attended our Paint Barefoot on the Beach Concert Event this past Saturday! Thank you to the sponsors and donors! Thank you for the 65 sales in support of Spectrum Parents Events.
A big thank you to the top art bidders —Coach Pete; congrats on adding 3 new pieces to your massive collection! I know you will enjoy the “SEA 3D” when visitors view the 3D effect and Ooow and Awe! Thank you, Mary H; I can’t wait to hear how people comment on your Lennon portrait when you have it displayed on its unique floating mount!
Thank you, Frances O, for purchasing Liberty, Face the Flames, and Superboy and all your support of Spectrum Parents Events! Thank you, Sara C! I know you will enjoy your Heart & Hands, Superboy, and Face the Flames mixed media original works! Thank You, Elizabeth M; your Liberty artwork is spectacular —Please send us a photo of you next to it when you hang it!
Thank you, Dawn H, and welcome to being one of my newest collectors, along with a shout-out to Rhianon G too! Thank you to everyone who attended, and thank you to all of my wonderful collectors who have supported my work over the years, making charity benefit shows possible. Together we’ve helped many children and families and have a lot more to do!
Speed painting, cocktails and fun: Autism-support event will feature world-famous artist Michael Israel
A school bus driver pushed Suzi Noyes over the edge. Her son Connor, who is autistic, was a first-grader in fall 2011 and couldn’t control that he would spit a little when he talked. The bus driver, however, singled him out and made him sit behind her for the rest of the year.
“He shouldn’t have been punished for his disability,” Noyes said. “He would have loved to have been able to stop it. We worked on it, believe me. But he couldn’t.”
The Virginia Beach mom fled to Facebook to find support from others with children on the autism spectrum. She found it. Noyes soon had an official organization, Spectrum Parents Events.
The group, now about 800 strong, relies on their activities for emotional support. However, the specialized events aren’t cheap.
Artist Michael Israel is known internationally for his speed painting. He can produce realistic, large canvas pieces in less than 10 minutes. He has performed for Fortune 100 companies, celebrities, and presidents in high-energy performances he calls art concerts. He also auctions his work for charity. (Courtesy of Michael Israel)
Since he started in 1974, Israel has performed around the world for Fortune 100 companies, presidents, and celebrities. His two-fisted, messy, high-energy performances are appropriately called “art concerts” — he pulls together realistic, large-scale canvases in minutes. He’s probably equally recognized for his fundraising for groups like the Special Olympics, Susan G. Komen breast cancer organization, and Ronald McDonald House Charities.
In 2008, he painted a 36-square-foot portrait of businessman and philanthropist Warren Buffett in less than 10 minutes. It later sold for $100,000 to benefit Girls Incorporated of Omaha.
Saturday’s show kicks off at 7 p.m. with a virtual cocktail hour and then moves into Israel’s painting. Meanwhile, Noyes will be holding a silent auction, and Israel will open up his artwork for bids. A percentage of the proceeds go to Spectrum Parents.
Michael Israel Event in Reno, NV. for Reno-Tahoe Open Foundation. Birdies & Brushes fundraising event in 2012. (Michael D. Davis)
The evening is meant to be interactive. People will be encouraged to share selfies from home and chat online with the auctioneer and other entertainers who are part of the show.
The virtual events allow him to engage more with his audience than his live shows, Israel said in a phone interview from his Florida home.
“I can’t even see people in the front row because all of the light blaring on me, and I certainly can’t talk to them,” he said. “I this case, I know what everybody’s saying. … When I hang out in the green room, I look at the chats and I talk with people and stuff. It’s really pretty neat.”
Israel has always enjoyed using his art to give back to nonprofits, he said. When the pandemic hit, however, his travel schedule got canceled and he knew that nonprofits were aching for money.
He started the virtual art concerts and the “20for21” program in which he will do 20 no-cost virtual charity events in 2021.
He said he hasn’t decided yet what he will do for the Virginia Beach group but will likely do two or three pieces and at least one with a nautical theme. At least two will be 3D paintings and 3D glasses will be mailed to those who buy tickets. Israel said the paintings will look just fine without the glasses.
He said he’s raised more than $800,000 in the past year with the virtual concerts.
“It’ll be kind of anything goes auction, so people get a chance to steal the artwork, basically, on behalf of the charity,” Israel said. “I can write a bigger check with my paintbrush than I can with my pen.”
A painting of the late boxer Muhammad Ali done by artist Michael Israel. Israel is known internationally for his speed painting. He can produce realistic, large canvas pieces in less than 10 minutes. He has performed for Fortune 100 companies, celebrities and presidents in high-energy performances he calls art concerts. He will be doing a virtual fundraising event for the Virginia Beach-based group Spectrum Parents Events. (Courtesy of Michael Israel)
Noyes was scrolling online late one night when she came across Israel’s work. She read about the charity program and applied.
It was nothing less than a miracle, she said.
Spectrum Parents has become more of a family than a formal organization. The events, from roller-rink nights to hayrides, to hiring a Santa Claus for their annual Christmas party, have become a necessity for the group. Parents can be together and share experiences with people “who know.” The children make friends and don’t have to worry about being bullied.
“It’s not like when you go to the grocery store,” Noyes said. “You’re not snickered at, you’re not glared at, you’re not told, ‘Hey, can you keep your kid under control?’ So, we stick together so we’re not hurt and we’re not crying.”
But renting a roller rink for one group can get expensive. The fundraising helps defray the costs, Noyes said.
Noyes said she knows people are getting tired of virtual events with the pandemic, but hopes people will still tune in, even for just a little, for the cause. And the fun.
She’s wrangled raffle prizes that include an Outer Banks weekend escape and a 20-minute Zoom call with Izzy, a professional surfer who founded Surfers Healing, a surf camp for children with autism.
The evening is open to anyone, even those who can’t afford to pay. Noyes wants everyone to enjoy.
“This will be so cool.”
if You Go
Virtual “Barefoot on the Beach,” Saturday, March 20, 7 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Tickets: Single tickets, $45, which include access, 3D glasses and a raffle ticket. Other packages include “Virtual Table for 10” at $350 to include extra raffle tickets and “VIP Ultra,” which includes a gourmet gift basket. The ticket page also allows people to sign up for a free ticket or to make a donation. People can also buy raffle tickets, which range in price from $20 for 1 to $100 for 10, without participating in the event.
Denise Watson is a features writer. She covers the visual arts and people, places, and things – anything interesting and oddball (like her). She’s a Norfolk native and has written for her hometown paper for 30 years now.
