Bill Brown, Co-founder of the Calgary based Elevate Auctions, auctioneering items for the annual Eric Francis Pizza Pigout. (Kade Stevens, CMRU.ca)
From Kids Cancer Care, to the Hitmen Hockey Club, Elevate Auctions has been supporting local Calgary charities since 2009. As a small family owned business, Elevate was founded to provide a fun and unique service to charitable organisations that at the time, did not exist. Nowadays, many Calgary charities say that Elevate Auctions is their go to service when they want to raise as much money as possible for their cause. But who is the man behind Elevate?
From auto auctions to raising millions for charity
Bill Brown is a third generation auctioneer, and has been in the business himself for nearly 40 years selling cars here in Calgary. But early on, he often volunteered to auction off items for charities and believed that with a bit of help, these charity auctions could raise much more money for their cause.
Brown says, “I thought, gosh, if they would have promoted or organised or done something a little bit different, those thousand dollars of items could have been worth two or three with a little bit of consultation and advice. If I ever had the time… it would be a fun thing to try and do.”
When he found that time, Bill Brown co-founded Elevate Auctions with two nieces Michelle Black and Renee Rothzen. But putting on a charity auction is no easy feat, it takes a passionate team, dedicated volunteers, generously donated items, and a lot of time and planning.
Over the years, here are just a few of the charities, organisations, and events that Elevate Auctions has worked with:
- Priddis Greens Charity Classic
- Kids Cancer Care
- Calgary Hitmen Hockey Club
- Hospitals of Regina Foundation
- Keyano College Foundation
- Pivot Pointe Sports Group (Spartan Hockey; PGA of Canada Foundation; STARS Air Ambulance)
Charity auctions that Elevate puts on can range from fancy galas to the Eric Francis Pizza Pigout held downtown at the Cowboys dancehall. Despite the challenges of putting on these events, Brown says that he and his team keep doing it, ultimately, because it’s fun. Putting on live auctions and bringing auctioneering to an audience that may have never heard it before is a lot of fun for Brown and his team. But most importantly he says “You’re making a big difference… And so it feels good to help them raise more money.”
Author’s Reflection
I’m incredibly thankful to Bill Brown and Elevate Auctions to have had the chance to sit down with Bill and have him tell his amazing story. To hear first hand how fundraising efforts like Elevate make a difference to so many people and organisations was truly inspiring. It is clear that Bill and his team are very passionate about what they do, and seeing that passion for making a difference was incredibly motivating to me. I hope that Bill and Elevate can benefit from this piece by using it on their website to show everyone how awesome and passionate Bill is, the same passion he showed me while working with him. I’ve gained a true understanding and deep respect for the hard work it takes to make a difference in our community, and I hope that in a very small way this piece can make a difference as well. Thank you again to Bill and Elevate for this awesome opportunity!
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