Dear Friends:
We are so excited to celebrate a very special milestone! This year marks the 25th Annual Audrey Grace Benefit Auction!
Not many benefit auctions—or even futurity auctions—have remained this strong for this long. It is truly incredible to see the continued generosity of the horse industry and its commitment to helping abused children have the chance for a better life. Last year alone, we raised a net total of $50,700!The story of the Audrey Grace Auction began after we lost our daughter, Audrey Grace, at birth on October 21, 2002. In the face of tragedy, our horse friends from across America came together to show us that something positive could grow from tremendous sadness.
Together, we began raising funds for a much-needed children’s home in Audrey’s honor.Over the past twenty-four years, the Audrey Grace Auction has raised more than $3,160,000 for New Horizons and its work with sexually and physically abused children. In 2009, our dream became a reality when the first group of children moved into the Audrey Grace House.
Your generous donations have been instrumental in supporting the Audrey Grace House, a residential treatment center for children suffering from emotional, behavioral, attachment, and relationship issues resulting from abuse and neglect. Funds raised have helped purchase the land, build and maintain the home, and provide food, clothing, schooling, medical care, Masters-Level Licensed Clinicians, and 24-hour caregivers who give these children the care and stability they need.We are truly grateful for your continued support in helping provide a safe, nurturing environment where these children have the opportunity for a better future.Each year, thousands of children are victims of abuse.
For more than FIFTY years, New Horizons, a nonprofit 501(c)(3), has provided services to at-risk youth and developed a reputation as a benchmark for quality, continuum-of-care treatment for children with the highest level of need. Services include residential care, foster homes, therapeutic group homes, family services, adoption programs, and emergency shelter.New Horizons’ goal is to serve children and their families closer to home through its Community Centers of Care. These residential treatment homes serve children considered to be at the highest risk. The Audrey Grace House, located in Abilene, Texas, was the first of these centers.
New for this year, the Audrey Grace Auction will be co - hosted by Premier Sires! After 24 years of hosting the auction on Show Horse Today, Robyn Hayward (Duplisea) will continue to play an important role via Lazy H Bar Media, helping set up the auction on the same platform with proxy bidding to ensure a smooth transition and promoting the auction via her long-standing social media platforms. Together we are all dedicated to helping the Audrey Grace Auction reach as many people as possible for the sake of the children.
The online auction will open Monday, December 7 and run through 5:00 p.m. EASTERN on Sunday, December 13. Auction items include stallion services, training services, tack, websites, advertising, artwork, jewelry, show clothes, and other horse-related items.
We hope you will join us in our mission again this year by generously donating to the 25th Annual Audrey Grace Benefit Auction.One of the things that makes this auction so special is that, unlike many charities, 100% of every dollar raised goes directly to the children. No salaries are paid for the work involved. Everyone donates their time, letterhead, postage, and other expenses. Premier Sires and is donating the use of its website and Show Horse Today is donating their platforms for promotion and our horse friends generously donate the items.
ZERO costs mean 100% of the proceeds go straight to children in need!
Your donation is 100% tax deductible for the full retail value. Please use the enclosed form when submitting your auction donation information so we can ensure the accuracy of website addresses, phone numbers, complete descriptions, and retail values. Please also include any additional fees that will need to be paid by the buyer.We encourage you to spread the word.
Children are a universal love. Abuse does not wait, and these children cannot wait.
As we celebrate the 25th Annual Audrey Grace Benefit Auction, we are reminded just how much can happen when people come together for a common purpose. We, along with all of the staff and children at New Horizons, sincerely appreciate your involvement, your generosity, and the incredible support the horse industry has shown for the past twenty-five years.
Warmest regards,
Jane & Leon Backes
http://www.newhorizonsinc.com/home