New United Way event will auction off art in exchange for volunteer hours

A  new local fundraising event is encouraging attendees to leave their checkbooks and credit cards at home and instead be ready to give their time.

Time for Art, presented by the United Way Young Leaders Society and the Quarton Society, will be held on June 26.

'This United Way event puts a new twist on a traditional non-profit event,” says Benjamin Hoover, senior campaign coordinator for United Way. 'Although multiple non-profits in the area host silent art auctions, we are unaware of any that focus on raising volunteer hours instead of financial resources.”

At Time for Art, attendees will view up to 35 pieces of art created and donated by local artists. 'We have everything for people to bid on - jewelry, pottery, dance lessons, etches, paintings, metalwork and even a skateboard,” says United Way volunteer and event organizer Nate Klein. But instead of bidding a certain dollar amount, bidders will indicate the number of volunteer hours they are willing to serve in order to take home the art.

Of course at the end of the night, the winning bidders won't just take the art home with them. 'You have to put in the number of volunteer hours you bid in order to take your art home,” says Klein, noting that volunteer hours will be easily tracked through United Way's volunteer website.

The event will kick off with a cocktail hour paired with a volunteer fair, providing the opportunity to meet representatives from local non-profits - and find out about their various volunteer opportunities - as well as the contributing artists and other United Way supporters.

'We are hoping that some attendees will find a fit for their time, talent and treasure - everything from providing sweat equity to serving on a board of directors,” Klein says. 'It's about connecting with something you are passionate about.”

While this is the first time such an event is being held in the Cedar Rapids area, Klein has been involved with the project in two other communities - one in Georgia and one in South Carolina - and it has been very successful, especially with young professionals looking to connect with their community. 'Young professionals don't always have the funds to invest in art but they have time to give back and the desire to get involved.”

There has been a fair amount of buzz about the event in the community from those excited to attend, and Klein says the response from local artists also has been great. 'I think what made artists excited about this was that is was something new and completely different,” he says. 'Because it is a United Way event it is helping many great causes all at once and they appreciate that their art can contribute to the community.”

Klein says they hope to have many of the artists in attendance at the event.

There will be several awards for the art being auctioned as well, including best in show and an award for the piece of art that gets the highest number of volunteer hours committed.

Klein himself is very passionate about volunteering and helping others connect with their passions. He says he is particularly thrilled to help bring this event to Iowa's Creative Corridor.

'My passion is connecting people to their passions. And to be able to do that in a fun and creative way like this is exciting. This is an event designed to bring together the cultural community and the servant leadership community. We wanted to think about a way to do something different to engage and connect the community.”

While this is the first Time for Art event locally, organizers have set goals to help measure its success. Klein says their goal is to raise 2,008 hours of volunteer services, which is the equivalent of one full-time volunteer for the community.

'It is our hope that the attendees will discover and become involved with a non-profit or opportunity that they never knew existed,” Hoover says. 'By being engaged in the mission of the organization, we anticipate relationships to be developed as a result of this event that will last far beyond the event itself. And if they get to take home a piece of local art in the process, all the better.”

Time for Art will run from 6 to 9 p.m. on the June 26 at Mount Mercy University Graduate Center. Heavy appetizers and drinks will be served. Tickets are $10 to $15. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit uweci.org/events.