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MLTA-PAC SUMMER CONVENTION FUNDRAISERS A SUCCESS

By Tim McDonnell, MLTA-PAC Committee Chairman

The MLTA-PAC held two fundraisers at the Summer Convention at Mission Point. The always popular Silent Auction and a new event—a bicycle Scavenger Hunt on Mackinac Island. But before I get to those results, I want to thank all of the MLTA Members who stepped up to the plate and answered the call of our urgent fundraising needs back in May. This was prior to the announcement of the Summer Convention fundraisers and several people donated large checks to replenish badly needed MLTA-PAC funds. That campaign netted several thousand dollars and made a big dent in our fundraising goal for 2018. We cannot say thank you enough! But back to the Convention.

The Silent Auction generated a total of $3,555 from 24 donated items with a donor value of $4,413. Many thanks to the people who donated a wide variety of items for the auction and made it a tremendous success. We had a number of great items including gift baskets, wine, sporting event tickets and personal electronics to name a few. The successful bidders all walked away with the item that they wanted and the MLTA-PAC benefited greatly.

The MLTA-PAC also held a bicycle Scavenger Hunt on the Island that involved 5 teams of riders. This was a new idea and it was a big hit. The teams were as follows:

Amrockin’ It with Prop Logix—Aaron Weller, Jenn Sting, Jack Shumway, Angela Crusoe and Luis Burgos
CSS Rum Runners—Debbie Bartlett, Beccy Clennan, Jerome Jelinek and Maura Snabes
First American Premium Peddlers—Laurie Brecken, Sean Callaghan, Wes Parkinson, Jilanne Scholtz and Debbie Wiley
It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere—Eileen LaPlante, Hollie Oxie, Geoffrey Prichard and Jamie Scheett
reQuire Mackinac Rebel Rousers—Donna Anderson, Linda Aparo, Paul Aparo and Pamalla Lanaux

Each of the teams did a great job raising contributions for the PAC with some teams even generating additional contributions while they were out on the Scavenger Hunt. The teams were given a list of items or locations around the island that they needed to find, photograph and share the photos on the MLTA App. All of the Convention attendees had fun keeping tabs on each team’s progress through the photos posted. The photos would indicate that the teams were having a great time out on the ride. If you haven’t seen the pictures, download the Michigan Land Title App from the App Store and check them out. The teams were scored by the number of questions that they answered correctly and they also received bonus points for the photos that they took. The scoring was very close; however, the CSS Rum Runners came out on top by just a few points.

In the end, the MLTA-PAC was the big winner because the five teams combined to raise an additional $5,800 for the MLTA-PAC. The First American Premium Peddlers won the fundraising competition. The Scavenger Hunt funds combined with the Silent Auction and the May fundraising campaign left the MLTA-PAC with a balance of close to $20,000 just in time for the upcoming election cycle.

The MLTA-PAC Committee would like to again thank all of the members who have contributed to the PAC over the past year; especially those members who have made a commitment to contribute on an annual basis. The funds generated for the MLTA-PAC help us get our industry’s voice heard in Lansing and with term limits and seats turning over in the State House and Senate, that is a never-ending process.

The MLTA-PAC Committee would like to challenge all members who receive this article to make a commitment to donate to the MLTA-PAC on an annual basis. If everyone committed to donating $50 to $100 dollars or more each year, the PAC would have a healthy balance and it would eliminate the need for emergency fundraising campaigns.

One final THANK YOU to all who have contributed. Your participation is greatly appreciated!