So can you stand just ONE more post about the Why I Love Ottawa/Gatineau photo contest? Because I really want to tell you how it all came out!
The auction was, as I may have mentioned, last Saturday at Harry’s OttawaStudioWorks studio. I’d hoped Beloved and I could attend together (on a – gasp! – date, no less!) but fate had other plans, so I found myself another handsome feller to escort me to the auction: Tristan!
When we arrived, voting was just wrapping up on the People’s Choice award, and bidding on the photos was brisk. The insecure 14 year old who lives not very deep in my psyche was relieved to see that at least someone had bid on my photo – in fact, there were quite a few bids registered. This is the photo that ultimately ended up in the auction, chosen in collaboration with Harry for maximum auction appeal.
So, as I said, we arrived just in time to cast our ballots for the People’s Choice. I was torn between Alan Neal’s and Ian Black’s entries – and not entirely because I am a CBC fangirl at heart — and Sandy Sharkey’s great photo. Tristan was given a ballot as well, and I asked him if he understood what was being asked of him. He nodded with a smug little smile and said he knew exactly which photo he wanted to vote for.
I grinned with a bit of maternal pride myself as I handed him my pencil, and watched over his shoulder as he carefully wrote down the name of the photographer of his favourite image. Andrea Tomkins!
I suppose I should have known Tristan’s deep love of chickadees would win out over his intrinsic sense of loyalty. Traitorous boy, I thought it would be many years before I was displaced in his heart by a chick(adee). 😉 Wonder if he would have voted differently if I’d entered the photo of him into the contest??
On Saturday I also had the chance to connect with Peter Tilley, the executive director of the Ottawa Food Bank. I eavesdropped as he explained a bit about the Food Bank to Tristan, and was astonished to learn that the Food Bank moves more than 12 tonnes of food every day. I knew they were a big operation, but I truly had no idea of their scope. Stay tuned, there may be another blog post pending about that amazing institution!
All in all, it was a terrific event and the auction raised more than $1200 for the Ottawa Food Bank. You can read a re-cap of the rest of the event on Harry’s blog, and see a picture with me and my traitorous but still adorable date. I was deeply honoured when friends showed up at nearly the last minute and entered the winning bid on my Canal Skater photograph.
And I was further honoured to find out that the photo came in runner up to Sandy Sharkey’s gorgeous winter crows photo in the People’s Choice category.
A fun night, a great cause, a wonderful city: does it get any better than that?
that is a gorgeous image! i love everything about it!
We feel so lucky to have snagged your photograph, and to have supported such a worthy cause to boot. It’ll be prominently displayed in our sunroom!