Pickin' for Sick Children

More technical difficulties

2010-03-23T11:19:00.000-07:00

I've been having trouble with my scanner again, so until I get it up and running properly, I want to take a moment to thank those who have made pick donations in the last several weeks:

Jeff Schauer donated two picks from the Who's Superbowl performance.

Steven from Flogging Molly donated 36 picks (4 different styles).

Bill donated 4 Los Lobos picks during the Experience Hendrix stop in Milwaukee.

Joe Satriani donated 4 picks from the Experience Hendrix tour.

Marco donated 13 Los Lobos and two Kenny Wayne Shepard picks from the Hendrix show as well.

Hippie with Foreigner donated two unopened BAGS of picks.

AJ - also with Foreigner donated 26 picks of four different styles

Mike with The Black Eyed Peas donated four different picks.

Farmer with Gov't Mule donated six picks (three different styles)

Darius Rucker also donated 13 picks of various design.

I will get scans up as soon as possible. Thanks for looking and thank you to all of the donors!

Happy 2010!

2010-01-25T19:05:00.000-08:00

It's been a bit slow since the last post thanks to the Holiday Season, but I have been going forward a aggressively as possible with the collections, so here we go with the latest round...

Meep and Rob with Theory of a Deadman made a generous donation of 25 total picks when they were through a few days ago:

Noah and James Senter with Sick Puppies donated 4 picks, as well as some recording session picks from the legendary Dicky Betts:

Chris, from the Las Vegas band Taking Dawn gave me 3 picks after their set in Milwaukee. Hopefully next time they are in town, the weather will be a bit more hospitable to my mew desert-dwelling friends...

Justin, with Milwaukee's latest "local" band (they have been here about 5 times in the past 6 months), Halestorm , donated 6 picks:

Eric Gromley donated a total of 43 picks from the Trans-Siberian Orchestra:

James Hellman gave me a total of 8 picks, 4 from Nick Jonas's latest solo tour when he was in town last week as well as 4 from the Jonas Brothers' 200 tour. Thanks James!

Galen, Ryan and Colin with Shinedown were all very generous with their picks, giving a total of 33 picks of several different (and quite clever) styles:

Wookie, with Breaking Benjamin, donated a total of 12 picks along with one of his own personal variety...

Diaz, with Notion City Soundtrack donated 5 picks:

Thank you again to those of you who have donated picks, bought picks or simply made donations to the Children's Hospital in the name of Pickin' for Sick Children. Stay tuned, the season is starting to ramp up again...

Pictures as promised

2009-12-16T20:02:00.001-08:00

Here they are. Based on the last post (in no particular order...):

Thanks to all donors. I will try to update the website again soon.

Two Months?

2009-12-10T19:45:00.000-08:00

I've neglected updating the blog for a myriad of reasons. None of which are good. Among other things, my scanner is on the fritz and I am just now on the verge of getting it back to working condition. So, until I can put up scans I will give proper credit and hopefully pictures will follow in the next few days.

Kenny and Randy with Trace Adkins crew donated 7 picks.
Martina McBride donated 6 picks
Fred with Megadeth donated 14 picks
Willie Gee with Megadeth donated 24 picks
Larry with Machinehead donated 10 picks
Chief with Machinehead donated 21 picks
Nate with GWAR donated 6 picks
Grape with Lamb of God donated 14 picks
Adam with Boys Like Girls donated 12 picks
Josh with Boys Like Girls donated 14 picks
Mike with Versa Emerge donated 9 picks
Darren with Mastodon donated 3 picks
Warren with Mastodon donated 3 picks
Elwood with ZZ Top donated 10 picks
T.J. With ZZ Top donated 10 picks
Paul with Cheap Trick donated 46 picks

I promise to post images of the donated picks as soon as possible. Until then, thank you for looking and Happy Holidays.

More and More...

2009-09-29T20:03:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the time between postings, but life has been pretty busy lately. Not an excuse, but that's the way it is.

Straight to business:

Steve with Sugarland donated three picks when they were here in mid-September:
A special thank you to Chad, Scott and "Punk-Rock" Dave, as well as a few other Alice In Chains crew members who wish to remain anonymous, for a great donation of 32 picks and four drumsticks from their recent show here in Milwaukee:

To the boys on Marilyn Manson's crew who geve me a total of 26 picks, thank you:

Like a fool, I forgot to write down the name of the tech who hooked me up with four Loggins and Messina picks when they were in town about 3 weeks ago. With apologies to this donor, please contact me if you wish to be properly thanked. Also a fifth pick was donated by "Ms. Jane" who was given a pick at the end of the show. Thank you Ms. Jane...

Finally, my new giveaway or promo picks arrived this morning. With a nod to AC/DC, here they are...I hope you like them:

Until next time, take care and thank you for looking and supporting the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.

The Latest and the Greatest...

2009-09-03T18:10:00.000-07:00

I would like to thank first and foremost the members of the guitar pick collecting community who have taken to this fundraiser with great enthusiasm. In the last two weeks, I have had offers to buy guitar picks which - to date - have totalled nearly $900...and I have not yet finalized all the offers to buy picks yet. These people who typically only trade picks have been (literally) overwhelmingly enthusiastic in their interest. I want to thank them all publically for their thoughts, well-wishes, pick donations, and general support by buying picks to raise money for the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.

Now to the most recent donations:

Dave, J.L. and other members of the Jimmy Buffett crew donated the following this year, five of Jimmy's picks and 11 picks from members of the infamous Coral Reefer Band:

As well, I was awestruck and very happily surprised when J.L. (the band's drum tech), at the end of the show, handed me a pair of unused drumsticks - still in the Vic Firth sleeve. The true surprise came when he showed me the sleeve...hand signed by Jimmy Buffett!

To all of the guys on the crew - and to Mr. Buffett for signing the sticks - Thank you so much for your support! If any of yo urun across this crew, please make sure to treat them well, not only do they deserve it for their generosity, but I can honestly say that the entire crew is a great bunch of guys that I look forward to seeing year after year!

Next, Matt, with the band Dream Theater donated nine picks - three of each:

When I approached Matt, he handed me three each of the standard sized picks. As I always do, I thanked him for his donation, shook his hand and walked away. As I was standing outside the venue on my break, he found me and handed me three more picks. He called them the "Super-Secret Picks" because these are the ones John Petrucci uses on stage and are typically not given out to fans or pick collectors. With that in mind, I want to thank Matt for his generosity and thoughtfulness for tracking me down with the special donation.

David with Devil Driver gave me a bunch of picks (27 total) and was very enthusiastic about th efundraiser, he was a nice as could be and said he wished he could give more, but the band was running low. Thanks David!

Ian and Ernie were just in town and donated a total of eight picks. I, unfortunately did not have a lot of time to talk to them, but in the time I had, they were gracious enough to listen to my pitch for pick donations and did not hesitate for a moment. Thanks a lot guys...

Finally, Mr. and Mrs. Anonymous strike again with a 9-pick donation from a Daryl Worley show they recently did in the Chicago Area. I was not able to get a tech name who donated, so if you have a name for me, please let me know.

Thanks for checking in and for all of your support!

2009-08-17T08:05:00.000-07:00

It's been a bit slow lately, but I have a few more to share with y'all

Val with the Moody Blues donated four different picks from John Lodge and Justin Hayward:

The boys in Blink-182 donated a cool dozen picks on their recent stop in Milwaukee:

And finally, The tech from Collective Soul (Sorry, but I didn't write down your name, please contact me to give proper credit Mr. St. Luis Obispo) donated four different picks from the band.

2009-08-02T19:43:00.000-07:00

Wow! It's been a busy past few months, and unfortunately, I've neglected to update the webpage for a while. I have no real excuse, so I will not bore you with any lame excuses.

Here we go...

Let me start by thanking Wooter with the band Kill Hannah. About a year ago, I noted that I neglected to properly write down his name with a pick donation he made. So sorry, Wooter. Fortunately I ran across him a few weeks ago and he - very politely - reminded me that he was not properly credited. Please let this serve as a proper thank you for your earlier donation, Wooter. And also thank you for following the blog...

Since the last update, I have collected a few more donations:

Sparky with Third Eye Blind donated a dozen picks

Tom, on tour with Harry Shearer, Christopher Guest and Michael McKean (AKA Spinal Tap) on their "Unwigged and Unplugged" tour donated four picks

Very Recently, an eBay buyer by the name of Shawn Brice from Missouri donated a bunch of picks (56 by my count), three photos autographed by James Otto, a Kid Rock 2009 local crew shirt and some drumsticks. Shawn works at various venues in Lake of the Ozarks, Kansas City and Springfield. If you happen to cross paths with this fantastic man, please remember that he is one of the good guys in the world. I would love to thank Shawn specially, as his donations came selflessly and unsolicited. I am certain that his donations will generate a few hundred dollars for the Children's Hospital. THANKS A TON SHAWN! Here are pictures of some of Shawn's donations:

Next, Adam with Lacuna Coil donated 30 picks (5 sets of 6 picks)

James with the Jonas Brothers donated a pick from their stop in Milwaukee...

American Idol winner David Cook donated 20 picks.

The Dave Matthews Band generously donated 23 picks of various designs from the latest summer tour.

Opening for Dave Matthews, the boys from Umphry's McGee gave the fundraiser over 100 picks:

Gonzo with Crosby, Stills & Nash donated 18 picks. I always am fascinated by the "nylon" embossed signature picks like these from Steven Stills and Graham Nash.

A small side note, in all my years as a stagehand, this show was a first. Graham Nash came onto the stage during the loadout and personally thanked the stagehands for all their work. A really classy move my Mr. Nash.
Matt McGinn with Coldplay donated 10 picks and went out of his way to threaten me with violence if he saw these on eBay. Guess I'm in for a beating then, eh Matt? Actually, Matt was very supportive and his threats were limited to a pat on the back...

Mr & Mrs Anonymous came through with another donation from Big & Rich. I would also like to thank the crew members from Big & Rich for donating 22 picks

The Warped Tour 2009 recently came to town. Nick with Chiodos gave a total of 12 picks

Shug (sorry if this is misspelled) gave two sets of three picks:The guys in All Time low gave up 7 picks

Through Bad Religion's guy, Rhino, Anti Flag donated 10 picks:

Rhino and James of Bad Religion donated a total of 42 picks

Again, through Rhino, Less Than Jake donated two more and Black Tide donated one pick:

The boys in Authority Zero and a band whom I can't identify by the pick donated a total of 5 picks

The guys in Cash Cash gave three picks, and Sean from Big D and the Kids table gave me his last pick he had...

Jesse with In This Moment gave an even Dozen, the Madina Lake guys donated 4 picks and some of the nicest guys I could have hoped to meet: Zach, Brandon, Adam and Keenan with The Architects. They donated a total of 6 picks:

The band The Devil Wears Prada gave a total of 31 picks

A while back, Aaron with Pennywise donated 11 picks

Mr & Mrs Anonymous donated eight picks from the Kentucky Headhunters and a pair from Heart when passed through Milwaukee

The crew guys from Fleetwood Mac gave the fund a half-dozen picks of varying design...

That's all for now. I promise to update more often. If I left anyone out, please contact me and let me know.

Update Coming Soon...I PROMISE!

2009-08-02T16:43:00.000-07:00

Rolling along...

2009-05-23T07:12:00.000-07:00

The pick donations keep rolling in. Since the last posting, an additional 167 picks have been donated. Here we go...

Jerry Kink with Buckcherry donated eight picks,, four of each of the following:

Dean, donated one of the the most diverse sets of picks to date. Not only was he generous, but he was very friendly and talkative. He told me stories behind several of the picks he gave me while spending nearly a half-hour digging through his road case looking for different picks to give me. He started with 16 Buckcherry picks (4 different styles):

Dean has worked with Ted Nugent quite a bit in the past, so he had several different Nuge picks lying around and was happy to donate them:

Dean has his own Road Case manufacturing company, Mitchell Custom Cases, for which he had his own picks made. Also (during one of his stories) he was once simultaneously Ted Nugent's Stage Manager, Guitar Tech and Production Manager, therefore was dubbed the "EXECUTECH". Dean, being Dean, had some picks made up to commemorate the title...

Dean also worked with Night Ranger for a while. In that time, he thought it would be cool to have picks made up for bass player Brad Gillis that would be practical to throw out to audiences, as Brad typically uses steel picks. A prototype set of about a dozen were made up to see how well Brad liked using them. As it turns out, he did not like them at all and more were never ordered. Dean gave me one of the prototype picks, which will never be manufactured again, making it particularly rare...

Dean also donated several picks from the Doobie Brothers, Boston, Avenged Sevenfold, and Cheap Trick:

All in all, Dean donated a total of 58 picks. Thanks a lot Dean.

Joe, touring with the band Dope was running low on picks, but still gave me four of their newest picks:

Chad, who is currently with Chevelle donated ten picks and an autographed, stage-used drumhead from the band. I was at this tome able to scan the picks, but my camera is on the fritz, so I will have to delay adding a photo of the drumhead. Thanks Chad!

Stave with Metro Station donated 12 picks, six of the red and six of the orange...

Mark, Chris and Green, all with the band Testament gave me a total of 41 picks and three autographed drumsticks. As with the Chevelle drumhead, you will need to wait for pictures of the sticks until I can figure out what's wrong with my camera. In the meantime, here are the four different style picks donated my Mark, Chris and Green...

Chris (A name I love, but the way) with Blue October gave the fundraiser eight picks:

The band My Evolution only had one pick to donate, but they were so cool and moved by the cause of the fundraiser, they gave it to me to help raise money. As I always tell people who make donations, I don't care if you give 1 or 100 picks, the fact that you are supporting the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin is all that matters. Thanks you very much to the guys in My Evolution.

Eric with Static X donated 17 picks despite my having to yell my request over the opening band stage volume. He got the gist and did not hesitate to donate. Thank you Eric!

Finally, the boys in Skumlove let me keep the picks left on the mic stands and amps after their set. Thank you to Skumlove for donating 7 picks...

That's all for now. I hope to have more pictures, news and information soon, Thank you to all who keep this fundraiser floating and to all of you who are checking in and following my progress.

OOPS...

2009-04-28T19:03:00.001-07:00

I was in such a hurry during the last posting, I accidentally forgot to include Florida, Ethan and Tooker out on the All American Rejects tour who donated 13 picks, and here they are.
Sorry for the omission, fellas. I am sincerely greatful that you made these donations, and the last thing I meant to do was pass you over during the last posting...

2009-04-26T19:42:00.000-07:00

Alright. It's been nearly 3 weeks since my last posting and I have had a few additions from new friends, some from a few old friends and still some more from people who I have never met and wanted to make a donation.

Here we go:

First, from my good friend "Moose" who recently came off tour with Hinder during Motley Crue's winter tour. Here's where it gets kind of cool. I sent Moose a bunch of the Pickin' For Sick Children picks along with a SASE and a request to ask people on the tour to put a few picks together and send them to me. The package arrived sent me a total of 64 picks from Hinder, Motley Crue, Theory of a Deadman and Train. I want to thank Moose, of course. But I also want to thank those who also donated through Moose. When, and if, I ever get names of these people, they will be sure to get the appropriate public thank-you that I want to give to whomever gives me permission to do so. Until then, thank you to you all who gave picks to Moose...you know who you are!

Next, another friend I have not met before donated 25 picks. Ian from the Band New Found Glory donated a ton of picks at the beginning of the fundraiser, but I have not had the opportunity before to thank him in person. I was given the opportunity to do so the other day when they visited Milwaukee on their current tour. I want to take a moment to thank Ian again for his generosity and support as well as his kind words regarding the fundraiser.

On tour with New Found Glory is a band named Bayside who also donated 6 picks. Thanks to the boys in Bayside!

Dragonforce was in town last night and absolutely blew me away. Not only are they a great band to see perform some incredible musical acrobatics, but I dare say you would be hard-pressed to find a more down-to-earth group of guys. They were all very nice and approachable. When they heard of the fundraiser, they were eager to donate a total of 46 picks. Thank you to the guys in the band and on the crew.

Another friend I have crossed paths with several times in the past 16 months is Brian. This time he was touring with Cannibal Corpse and donated five picks:

Last and certainly not least, Matt from Alkaline Trio donated 14 picks to the cause. Matt is another friend I have been lucky enough to encounter a couple of times in the past year. I would also like to send a thank you out to Scott with Alkaline Trio who I have known for years and was a catalyst in getting me connected with Matt to solicit donations. Thank yo Matt and Scott!

A few more...

2009-04-02T18:43:00.000-07:00

I was fortunate enough to work the Doobie Brothers show the other night and want to send a thank you to the entire crew for not only donating 47 picks, but for being so cool and fun to work with. I wish the best to these guys and hope the road keeps them safe throughout 2009 and beyond.

Here are the different picks the boys donated:

Even a few from the Tim McGraw / Faith Hill tour in 2006:

Also, Mr. Anonymous collected a total of 20 picks from The Kentucky Headhunters:

REO Speedwagon:

and Little Big Town:

When they passed through town, he solicited these donations on my behalf. Thank you to Mr. Anonymous as well as the tour members from these bands who made their donations:

Thank you for checking in and I'll update again soon!

Keep On Keepin' On!

2009-03-30T19:23:00.000-07:00

Lets start by confirming that we have surpassed the $4,600 mark! In just over a year, you all have helped raise this money from either donating picks, buying picks or pledging money directly to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. Not too bad for a (very) small organization with limited resources. I think the true thanks for this goes to everyone who has taken time to simply listen to the proposition to give just a little with hopes of turning it into so much more. If this success continues, I dare say that the sky is the limit. THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SUPPORT, HELP AND GENEROSITY!

Now, to donation updates...

With this latest round of donations, Pickin' For Sick Children has been given 4,013 picks!

Joe, with the band Dope donated seven picks:

Greg, who is currently out with Darius Rucker, donated a total of 24 picks of various designs. Even as a Green Bay Packer fan, I think the Miami Dolphin picks are pretty cool...

Marty, Stan and Moby with Black Label Society donated a combined 39 picks to the cause.

Zakk Wylde of Black Label Society has done some tremendously generous things for St. Jude's Hospital and I encourage anyone reading this to check out the Black Label Society webpage at http://www.blacklabelsociety.com/ and click the link to St Jude's. This man has a heart of gold and, for what it's worth, I throw my full support behind him, his band and this wonderful cause.

The boys from Less Than Jake gave me eight picks...

A special thanks to the guys in Nickelback who took time during their stop in Milwaukee to donate seven picks for the fundraiser!

Greg with Sevendust opened up his road case enough to donate a very generous 31 picks...

Last (only because they were in town most recently), and most certainly not least, Jimmy Johnson and Greg who are currently out with Styx gave two handfulls - totaling 64 picks!

Again, I would like to thank everyone who takes the time to listen to my plea for donations, read this blog, send me encouraging e-mails and contribute financially to Pickin' For Sick Children! You are all the best!

Overdue update...

2009-03-05T14:51:00.000-08:00

A few picks have been added since the last update.

Bring me the Horizon came to town on the Taste of Chaos tour and donated a total of 45 picks (15 sets of three different picks). Sorry, but the black & white pick needed a bit of selective editing...

George Thorogood & the Destroyers donated a pair of picks:

The Dropkick Murphys and their crew (specifically Grizz, Billy and Kevin) donated a total of 14 picks:

Jonny Lang's crew donated four picks:

After a letter-writing request, I received a pair of donated picks from Sammy Hagar:

Finally, I had new picks made for the fundraiser to give as thank-you's for pick donations and to include in shipments to people who buy picks on eBay. The design is obviously inspired by Cheap Trick and I think they turned out great...

Thank you to all who donated, purchaced and otherwise supported the fundraiser!

We've reached $4,500!

2009-02-15T08:05:00.000-08:00

As of this writing, Pickin' for sick Children has surpassed the $4,500 mark in fundraising with a lot of help from eBay sales. Specifically Metallica and Cheap Trick pick sales alone have generated over $1,500 themselves. A check for an additional $2,225.78 will be sent to Children's this week. Thank you to all of you who have donated picks, money, time or resources to helping the cause!

Since the last posting, I have received a few more donations. First, I would like to thank a Anonymous donor from a land far away for donating 30 picks from various artists. This particular donor is rather modest and would like to keep his name and the picks he donated quiet, so I will respect that. However, I want to publicly thank him for the donation. You know who you are mystery donor...

I also had the privilege of running into the Merchandise Manager for the legendary band Foghat, Mr. RC McWilliams. RC sent me a extensive care package of donations for the fundraiser including 15 picks, a pair of signature drumsticks, two can cozies, a mouse pad, a live DVD, a live CD and a hand-signed 8x10 glossy photo of the band. These are sure to make a pretty penny at auction. Thank you again RC.

Finally, Michel with the band Meshuggah donated 16 picks during their stop in town on February 14:

Thanks again to all involved. Without your help, this fundraiser would not be possible!

2009-01-25T18:55:00.000-08:00

I just got a few more picks from Disturbed, Cheap Trick and Rodney Atkins. Here we go...

Trevor & Bull from Disturbed donated a total of 30 picks:

Bryan with the Rodney Atkins crew donated 11 picks:

During a 3-day run of Cheap Trick I was able to collect 111 picks left on the stage after Rick Neilson's pick-tossing rampages during the song "Dream Police":

I was also given two unopened bags of picks from Paul. Each bag has about 100 picks in them. Thank you to Trevor, Bull, Bryan, and Paul for helping out Pickin' for Sick Children.

New Additions and nearling the $4,000 mark!

2009-01-19T08:09:00.000-08:00

First, the good news. as of this posting, I have mailed another $700 check to Children's Hospital from pick sales and another round from eBay sales generated about another $850. I say "about" because I need to calculate the total that is to go to the Hospital. Total sales going to the Hospital would be awesome, but eBay and Pay Pal take their cuts. So, by my calculations, in just over a year we have been able to give The Children's Hospital of Wisconsin nearly $4,000!

THANK YOU TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE DONATED AND / OR BOUGHT PICKS FOR THIS CAUSE!!!

Now, in the past week, the mighty Metallica and their equally mighty crew came to town and were very generous. Between the several people I spoke to, a total of 84 picks were donated. Thank you to Zack, Chad, Justin, Mike, Dewey and Lou for all of your help in either giving the picks to the fundraiser or pointing me to the proper people to talk to. I am certain that your help will generate a lot of money for the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. So, without any further ado, here are the Metallica picks which were donated:

Touring with Metallica were Machine Head and The Sword. Andy and Brian with Machine Head went out of their way to donate a total of 274 picks, including an entire bag of the blue picks seen below. I want to thank these men for being not only generous, but gracious in giving me the time to talk to them and go through their cases despite being quite busy. Thanks again, gentlemen!

Equally busy was James with The Sword who donated a total of 18 picks:
Milo, touring with Reel Big fish was happy to give the fundraiser nine picks:

Happy 2009

2009-01-10T11:31:00.000-08:00

Well, just before Christmas, I ran into an old friend, Moose, on Hinder's Jagermeister Tour stop in Milwaukee and he hooked me up with a total of 121 picks from Hinder, including several red picks that I did not see used on stage. Check them out here:

Also I was able to get my hands on four picks from Trapt:

And 21 picks from Rev Theory:

Here's to 2009 being more successful than was 2008 for Pickin' for Sick Children as well as The Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-20T19:39:00.000-08:00

Because of a family vacation, this will be the last posting of 2008. Since the last post, I have been fortunate enough to cross paths with my good friend Biffen when In Flames passed through town on their last show of their tour. Biffen, Fish and Neil were generous enough to donate a total of 171 picks and an autographed drumhead from In Flames.

Biffen & Fish donated these picks (a total of 125):

Neil, who I had the pleasure of meeting for the first time, generously donated 46 picks from his personal collection:

Some from In Flames that Biffen & Fish did not have (!?!)

Picks from Devil Driver:
Several picks from Rob Zombie, Hellyeah, Head Automatica and Snot:

Miscellaneous picks from Zakk Wylde, Darryl Hall, Sevendust and an unidentified band:

And, perhaps the coolest picks to be donated to the fundraiser, five different picks from the "fictional" band Dethklok from the Adult Swim program "Metalocalypse". These were made specially for the tour that happened earlier this year performed by the show's creators and members of the band that performs all Dethklok's music.

Last, and certainly not least, Neil had all five members of In Flames autograph a drumhead to be auctioned off for the fundraiser.

Thank you to the entire crew and the In Flames band themselves. They have shown an enormous amount of generosity and support for the Pickin' for Sick Children cause!

The band Gojira donated a total of 45 picks. Thank you to the band and their tour manager for their generosity. A nicer group of people you will be hard pressed to meet.

Last, and certainly not least, Tayler with the band 36 Crazyfists gave me four picks. He said he would have given more, but they were running low and they needed them to last. As with anybody who makes a donation, it is not about the amount of picks given, but the simple act of making a donation that is appreciated. That said, thank you a ton Tayler:
That's all for 2008. I wish you all the happiest of times this holiday season and more importantly, health and happiness as well as a successful new year!

2008-12-06T10:17:00.000-08:00

As promised, a visual update via scans of picks donated since the last update. I apologize for the commentary brevity, but since 237 picks have been donated since the last update, I have a lot of ground to cover. These are in no particular order, so if you donated, plese do not read anything into the orser. Also, I will try to mention all donors by name, but some of my notes were misplaced. If I am not sure who donated certain picks, I hope you understand.

Here we go:

Carrie Underwood's crew donated these:

When the mighty Snot returned to Milwaukee, Brian donated six picks, two each of the following:

Hoogie with Shinedown donated these:

The boys in Rise Against:

John with Dir En Grey helped secure picks despite a language barrier:

Patrick with Death Cab For Cutie gave me several of these picks:

The Jonny Lang Crew donated over thirty picks total, consisting of the following:

This is the one that I feel really bad about. A gentleman who runs a comedy club sent me thse picks and I cannot find his information. These are promotional picks he had made up and are really cool!

After their show recently the guitarist for Bring Me the Horizon gave me four of these personally:

Sammy with the ZZ Top crew donated several of the clear picks and Mr & Mrs Anonymous gave me the black picks you see below after the show here a few months back.

Ron Vickers, tour manager for Alkaline Trio heard about the fundraiser and mailed me several picks and tour laminates to auction off for the fundraiser. This was perhaps the best surprise I have had since starting this fundraiser...

Matt with Alkaline Trio donated several picks as well on their stop in Milwaukee recently:

Pete and Za made their second rounds of donations since the fundraiser started:

Mike from Jack's Manequin donated some picks from the band as well as several from his personal stash:

Jason Mraz was cool enough to give me these:

Trace Adkins' crew gave several picks:

The Queensryche organization also again donated several picks via mail. Because their earlier donation generated nearly $100, they were happy to give another round for auction. They also donated a pair of shirts and a pair of autographed drumsticks (which, due to technical difficulties, I can't post at the moment, but stay tuned...)

The ever-gracious Mr & Mrs. Anonymous have donated many picks over the past few months...

Noah with 10 years came back and made another donation...

These were picks I found on stage after shows...

Thank you for checking these out. I will be more dilligent in future updates, I PROMISE.

WAY OVERDUE!

2008-12-03T12:09:00.000-08:00

I apologize to those who have been waiting for an update. But because of personal reasons and other time constraints, I have not updated this page in over two months. I will be posting scans of picks donated since the last update in the next couple of days. Included in the donations (in no order whatsoever) have been picks from the Eagles, Alkaline Trio, Carrie Underwood, Shinedown, Death Cab for Cutie, Jacks Mannequin, Queensryche, Snot, Rise Against, Ten Years, and many, many more including some very cool donations from individuals who have heard of the fundraiser and have made donations from their own collections.

Stay tuned and you will get to see the scans soon.

Again, sorry for the updates, I will be doing them more often in the near future. And as always, thank you for supporting Pickin' For Sick Children and Children's Hospital of Wisconsin

- Chris

Update and some great news

2008-09-15T07:08:00.001-07:00

Let me start by giving credit to those not properly recognized earlier. 10 Years picks were donated by Noah, The Kid donated Hawthorn Heights picks, Brad with Linkin Park donated several drumsticks and Lonnie with Chris Cornell's crew also donated several picks. Sorry for the delay in your recognition, boys!

Alright, lets see...I owe a few more credits and thanks for donations. In no particular order, because all donations are appreciated, Chris and Lewis with the Lynyrd Skynyrd crew donated a total of 41 picks, four different styles which can be seen here...

Next, Bill & bobby with the Counting Crows gave three different pick styles, 14 picks total:

Mr & Mrs anonymous donated an additional 12 picks, from various bands like John Michael Montgomery, Keb Mo, Robert Cray, Alice in Chains and Chris Isaac. Geroge with Eddie Vedder's crew donated a pair of picks for the fundraiser as well:

This brings the total through 9/15 to 2,398. My goal is to have 2,500 by months end!

Finally, Children's Hospital has extended indefinitely their endorsement of Pickin' For Sick Children. This means that I will be able to collect and sell picks to raise money as long as the generosity of people like Noah, The Kid, Brad, Lonnie, Chris, Lewis, George, Bill, Bobby and Mr. & Mrs. Anonymous continue.

Thanks you to everyone who has helped and here's to many more blog updates with good news!

Overdue, but pushing near 2,300

2008-08-22T12:31:00.000-07:00

I'm going to keep it brief for now.

Here we go...

Thanks to Andy with the Sheryl Crow tour who donated not only picks from that tour, but a few from a previous tour with a band you may have heard from, Pearl jam. A total of seven picks from Andy:

Sean from Linkin Park donated 27 picks, making certain that he includes at least a full set of all picks being used on the 2008 Projekt Revolution tour:

Also donated were several four drumsticks from Linkin Park:

Dave and Lonnie with the current Chris Cornell tour (also on Projekt Revolution) donated a total of 27 picks of varying designs as well... Dee with The Bravery donated an ENTIRE BAG, totaling 101 picks. Thanks a ton Dee!
Sparky with Ashes Divide gave 29 picks:Elwood with the Black Crowes gave 16 picks for the fundraiser:

Monk and Henry, through an old friend, Stiney, with the Dave Matthews band crew donated five picks and a pair of Carter's drumsticks:

Through a friend of the cause, Craig Crosby, I was able to get picks from 10 Years and Hawthorne Heights as well as a four drumsticks from 10 years. I was not able to get the names of the actual donors, so if you are they, please drop me a line and I will give proper credit where it is due...

Finally, the SR Guitar tech from Kill Hannah donated 20 picks yesterday. With apologies to Mr Kill Hannah Guiter Tech, I neglected to write down your name right away and it got away from me. Please e-mail me (chwipicks@yahoo.com) and allow me to give you proper credit.

Thanks to everybody who has donated picks, sticks, swag and cash, you are all great people!

2,052!

2008-08-03T05:17:00.000-07:00

With the latest donation lot, I have officially gone over 2,00 picks donated to date! With just under 2 months to go, I am hoping to break 2,500...

Let's see what has been donated since our last visit, shall we?

Dano and Dennis with The Police tour Police were gracious enough to donate a total of 13 picks from the band:

My old friend Steve, who is currently on tour with Stone Temple Pilots donated 22 picks during their stop in Milwaukee.

The Van's Warped Tour just rumbled through town and I was lucky enough to find several people willing to donate to the cause. In no order at all, thank you to Doug, Bob, Brian, Steve:

Angels and Airwaves:
Alesana:

Katy "I Kissed a Girl" Perry:

Bring the Horizon: The Briggs:
And again, Mr & Mrs Anonymous made a donation of 23 picks. Here is a selection of what they put together and donated:

Thanks to everyone who has made this a huge success to date!

Closing in on 2,000...

2008-07-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy few weeks. I will keep it brief by starting with the addition of 154 picks donated since the last update. That brings the new total to 1,967 picks donated!

Let's start with Jimmy Buffett. The men in Mr. Buffett's crew were quite generous and promised a "care package" to be forwarded in the next couple of weeks. I cannot wait! All I was told was that it would contain "goodies" for the fundraiser. I gotta admit, I am as anxious as my 5-year-old is just before Christmas. At the show, though, I was given five picks by Dan. His comment as he gave them to me was great: We're in Wisconsin, so green and gold seem appropriate..."
An old friend of AVMT, Mr. JL donated three pair of drumsticks to auction off as well. One of each is shown here...

The boys from 3 Doors Down and Hinder made a donation of a combined 82 picks (40 from 3 Doors Down, 42 from hinder). Thanks to Chris, Matt, Todd & Judah from 3 Doors Down and Moose with Hinder. You may remember Moose from the previous record holding donation of over 300 Three Days Grace picks. Thanks to all of these wonderful men.

I dropped in to solicit donations at the Kittie / Dope concert recently and Joe from dope gladly donated 16 picks.
After his donation, he actually went and talked to the ladies in Kittie and asked them for a donation. Unfortunately they do not use custom picks, but I was told that they now want some so they can make a donation. That was good to hear and I hope that if I ever cross paths with the gals in Kittie again, I can take them up on their offer.

Finally, I collected most of the donation of picks made at Summerfest this year between June 26 and July 6. I was able to collect a total of 51 picks from various artists who stopped through and were gracious enough to drop a few in the collection boxes I left out. Unfortunately, I do not have any individual names to thank, but I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to any and all who took the time to read my donation request and drop a few picks into the boxes. Below are pictures of some of the picks donated.

Independence Day update!

2008-07-04T18:01:00.000-07:00

Alright. I will keep the commentary to a mininum for now. But I will say that to date, I have over $1,000 in pledges and donated over $600 to Children's Hospital from pick sales on eBay. Speaking of which, there has been a slight change in the way eBay sales are going to be run. Because Childre's Hospital does not reimburse me for expenses incurred from running the fundraiser, it is up to me to collect these expenses off the top from money coming in through sales or pledges.

Such expenses have been primarially eBay fees, but also include purchase of materials for the Summerfest collections and the picks I had made up for the fundraiser. I try to keep these expenses to a minimum, but they DO exist. I am keeping meticulous records and will gladly disclose them to anyone who requests them. That being said, I will continue with the eBay sales as they appear to be the most effective method of raising money for the Hospital.

Now to the good stuff. I will start with one of the cooler things that has been donated. At the Jack Johnson Show at Alpine Valley this summer, one of the opening acts, Money Mark, donated to me one of his personal laminate passes from Bonnaroo 2008.

Jack Johnson's tech, Boogie, donated several picks from Jack's stash. I do not know if these are stock picks or custom made for Jack, buth they are pretty cool.I received a total of ten picks from Steve Vai's organization. eight from Steve Vai and two from Billy Sheehan:

One of my eBay buyers wanted to help by not only buying picks to raise money, but donating four picks from his personal collection, the two from the Misfits, I am told, were given to him by the band directly. Thank you very much for the support from the Holcombes

The boys in the Type O Negative pitched in with an eight pick donation:

Mick from the Hatebreed crew threw in for 19 picks:

Mr. and Mrs. Anonymous made another contribution of 11 picks, including four of the cool Willie Nelson picks (destined to raise a lot on eBay):

Finally, a fellow stagehand and friend, Jimbo, just passed on a donation of 18 picks from his personal collection. Here are a few...

Thank you to all who have donated during this past round. Words cannot say enough...you all are awesome!

A new, and HUGE, supporter!

2008-06-15T19:12:00.000-07:00

As of this past Friday (June 13), I have been given permission by the good people at Summerfest in Milwaukee to post pick collection boxes at eight of the main stages on the grounds!

For those of you unfamiliar with Summerfest, it is a 10-day festival on the Milwaukee lakefront that is as much an institution to Milwaukee as Beer and The Fonz. Over the course of the festival as many as a dozen different stages are continually showcasing local, state, regional, national and international musical acts.

With this many acts passing through the area in a relatively short period of time, it is not practical to try and collect picks in the conventional method I have been using. Which is to say, I can only be in one place at a time. Which is why I presented to the Summerfest marketing people the idea of providing multiple collection boxes at many of the stages. Initial reaction was positive, but due to the hectic schedule of this time of year for these people, I only recently got the official clearance.

This may very well be the greatest influx of donations to the cause possible, simply due to the volume of acts coming to town. Wish me luck, and I will keep you updated as things progress.

Also, I received the promised two bags of Three Days Grace picks from Moose. There were a total of 325 picks in the package! Big, BIG thanks to Moose.

Finally I have started selling picks on eBay. Response has been overwhelming. The second wave of pick sales is scheduled to end this evening. I will give you a sales total soon, but to give you a general idea, I will have sold about 60 picks and raised over $800 in the process!

Stay tuned...

Something Big is coming up...but first an update.

2008-06-01T07:01:00.000-07:00

I have not updated for a while, as I am in the process of negotiating something pretty big that should substantially add to the fundraiser stock. As things get a bit more certain, I will let you know.

I need to make this update brief, so here I go...

I want to thank Jordan from The Hives camp for donating eight picks of various styles:

Locksley was on tour with The Hives. They are a great live act and I would recommend checking them out should the opportunity arise. They were good enough to donate an even dozen picks to the cause, thank yo uKai, Jason and Jordan:

Adam and Justin with the Panic at the Disco tour were gracious enough to donate a total of 10 picks:

Touring with Panis at the Disco was Motion City Soundtrack. Brian offered 10 of the picks you see below:

Phantom planet was also along for the ride on the Panic at the Disco show. I was not able to get the name of the tech who gave me these picks during the set change, but he donated five picks:

Thrice rumbled through Milwaukee recently and Joe fave me a fistful of picks totaling 53:

Thank yo uto everyone who donated to the cause. So far it has been a success. I have ventured onto eBay to sell some of the picks donated and I will give yo uresults in the next update.

The bar has been raised!

2008-05-10T11:29:00.000-07:00

Gigantour recently passed through Milwaukee and I was reunited with a couple of my favorite road crew members. Biffen (with In Flames) and Willie (with Megadeth) were both on the tour, and after explaining the fundraiser, they were both generous with donations.

First Willie donated a total of 19 Megadeth picks:

Two Lamb of god picks from last year's Ozzfest:

And a coule of picks from Overkill that he found in his road case:

Biffen went way above and beyond, going so far as to unpack part of the band's trailer just to get to his stash of picks. When he got to them he handed over a total of TWO-HUNDRED In Flames picks! As he kept handing them to me by the fistful, I was speechless.

I want to take a moment to not only thank Biffen, but the boys in In Flames: Jesper, Bjorn, Anders, Peter and Daniel.

Below you will see pictures of all the different styles of picks Biffen and the Band donated:

Also on the tour I met Darren who donated six picks from Job for a Cowboy:
I also found several picks from Children of Bodom:

Finally, I was given - through a fellow stagehand and collector Craig Crosby - a guitar pick and slide donated by Nils Lofgren after the Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band's show in Milwaukee on march 17, 2008. This is a very cool and exceptional donation and I hope it brings a lot of money to the fundraiser at auction.

Way past due...

2008-05-04T18:54:00.000-07:00

I am aware that it has been over a month since my last posting. I have no excuse. That being said, in no particular order, here are the donations I have collected in the past month.

From the Boston bands The Briggs and The Street Dogs:

Thanks to Jason from The Briggs for a donation of eleven picks. The Street Dogs didn't have a lot to be able to donate, but generously donated the last two picks they had to the fundraiser:

Thanss to the Street Dogs for helping! P.S. if you have a chance, check both of these bands out! GREAT live shows from them both.

Next, Dustin from Gary Allan's crew dontated 15 picks, five of which came from his personal collection from an earlier Toby Keith tour:

Next, I want to thank Michael O'Brien from the Montgomery Gentry crew for donating seven picks:

Mr. and Mrs. Anonymous have returned with a donation of five additional picks from the band .38 Special:The Brothers Hanson were in town revently during their "Walk Tour" and donated three picks to help the Children's Hospital:

Last and most certainly not least, I want to thank Eddie and Wolfgang Van Halen for their donation of an even dozen picks:

This brings the new total donation to 974 picks. I promise to update more often, as more donations arrive!

More generosity!

2008-03-29T17:58:00.000-07:00

As usual, I don't know where to begin.

I want to start by noting that with this latest round of donations, I have broken the 900-pick mark in less than three months.

Of course when I say I broke the mark, it should go without saying that without all the tremendous support and donations, I would not be able to make this claim, so thank you to everyone who has helped me reach this mark so quickly!

This past friday, I worked with some great guys in the Seether and Three Days Grace crews this weekend and they were unbelievably generous. First, Scott with Seether (and the assistant stage manager - correct me if I am wrong in this title, Scott) donated eight Seether picks and seven other picks from his own collection to the fundraiser. Here are the Seether picks:

Scott also donated these picks from the bands Chevelle and Back in the Day:

Next, Moose donated TWO FULL BAGS of Three Days Grace picks to the fundraiser. I will be getting an official count on them later, as I am tired and lazy right now and I want to be sure I give Moose the proper credit for the amazingly generous donation. Here are the styles of the picks the man donated:

Finally, at least for this entry, I contacted the Queensryche website earlier this week and was immediately responded to with enthusiasm for the fundraiser. Literally within days of my request being received, I got seventeen different picks from the people in the Queensryche organization. Here they are:

In closing, I cannot thank Scott, Moose and the Queensryche people enough for their generosity and support in the cause. So far, I have exceeded my expectations in this drive, but I am not going to let that allow me to let up. I still have six months to go and I plan on making the most of it. Thank you for reading and keeping the fundraiser in your thoughts!

- Mesko

Easter Update

2008-03-23T10:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter. Sorry for the delay, but with the Holidays, work and a sick family, I am lucky to be able to maintian a weekly update! I have a lot of people to thank this week. Let me start by thanking Little Steven's (of E-Street Band fame amongst others) tech for a generous donation. He not only donated four Little steven picks:

But he also donated four additional picks from his personal collection. One from Weezer, one from the Foo Fighters:

And two from Little Feat:

Thanks Aaron.

Next I got a great surprise from Dan at the BB King Online Store. Dan sent in an even dozen picks from the fabulous B.B. King.

I can't thank Dan and Mr. King's organization enough for the donation. Admittedly, it was solicited, but it is easy to ignore such requests. Which is why I am so happy about this particular donation.

Finally, through my stagehand friend Craig Crosby, I was given thirty REO Speedwagon picks of various style. These were kindly donated by T-Bird and Rooster from the REO crew, so a special thank you to these two guys.

Update...

2008-03-15T06:36:00.000-07:00

In the last week, I was fiven 24 more picks for the fundraiser, bringing the total to 813 picks in only 2 1/2 months. First, Ace Frehley's tech gave me 10 picks from the current tour. Check 'em out (two are particularly cool as they left over from eht Kiss 200 Farewell tour):

Next, Doyle from the Bret Michaels tour donated 10 picks and was very enthusiastic about the fundraiser which was really cool to hear:

Last, and certainly not least, a friend of mine for years, Harry Gray donated four picks to the cause. HArry has been on tour with The Eagles and Aerosmith in the past, but thankfully still mingles with us "common folk" and does uprigging at many local venues Here are the picks Harry donated:

Thank you to Joel, Doyle and Harry. With only 2 1/2 months into the fundraiser and over 6 months to go, I am hoping for big things. Thanks for reading.

Another week, another 100+ picks

2008-03-06T05:42:00.001-08:00

I know I am behind in my updates, but I've been busy (yeah, yeah, what else is new?)

However, I have been fortunate enough to be given another 114 picks for the fundraiser, this time from the people on the Taste of Chaos and Billy Joel tours as well as from a friend in Texas who donated some pretty awesome picks.

Let's start with the Billy Joel picks, Vinnie the stage manager took care of me to the tune of a total of 47 picks. There are multiples of most of them, and here are the several different kinds that were donated. Thanks a ton Vinnie!

Next, I want to thank Chris & Susan from the Houston area. Friends of my Aunt Becky, they heard about the fundraiser and donated a total of 15 picks, including some sweet stuff from Van Halen, Ted Nugent, ZZ Top, Collective Soul and Little Texas. Check 'em out...

Finally, I made some friends on the Taste of Chaos Tour. Alex from Arteyu donated 20 picks as seen below:

Pete and Za from Avenged Sevenfold donated a total of 9 picks:

And last, but certainly not least, Evan. A representative from Ernie Ball gave me 23 promo picks for the Taste of Chaos tour that Ernie Ball is sponsoring:

Thank you to everyone who is following, sponsoring, donating and pledging!

Another long wait...

2008-02-25T18:59:00.001-08:00

Between being busy with work and family and the nasty flu-bug that's going around, I've been a bit neglegent in my updates. But, thankfully, I do have something to update.

I was given some pretty sweet picks by the techs from both Daughtry (7) and Bon Jovi (8) last Thursday. The techs insisted that I thank the Bands for the donations, so a big "Thank You" to Bon Jovi and Daughtry!

Here are the Bon Jovi Picks:

And Here are the Daughtry picks:

Additionally, more donations were made by some stagehand friends - "Twinkie" (6), "Mr. & Mrs. Anonymous"(2), "Half of Team Blackout"(1), Jimbo (1), Avatara (1) and Craig Crosby (10)

That brings the new donation total to 677 picks to date.

Keep 'em coming in. Thanks to all donors, pledges and supporters. Because of you the drive has already been a success!

Long time...

2008-02-16T17:48:00.000-08:00

It's been nearly a week since my last post. Sorry for the lag, but I have some good news!

The custom picks I ordered have arrived and they look great! Check 'em out:

I will be giving these away to people who make pick donations and / or pledge money as a thank you for their contribution(s). I also want to thank the people at InTune Guitar Picks for not only helping underwrite the picks they made for the fundraiser, but they also contributed 23 promotional picks to the drive.

Also I heard from an old friend of mine who did stagehand work with me way back in 91-92 when I started doing this. He went digging through his old stuff (I say old because he was smart and got out of the local stagehand biz early...) and found some picks he had from Heart, INXS and Metallica from "back in the day". Thanks to Chad Larson for these picks:

Finally, I met with two of the techs for MachineHead the other day and they were generous enough to donate six picks, but refused to take credit. Instead, I was instructed to give the thanks to Robb Flynn and Phil Demmel of MachineHead...so thank you Robb and Phil!

Add a cool 100 (plus 10) to the pile

2008-02-10T08:33:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a week since I last updated, and I can say it has been quite a week. Shows by matchbox twenty, Alanis Morissette, Marilyn Manson and Blake Shelton. First, I was given a total of thirty picks from those who wished to be identified as "Alanis Morissette's Band"

I was also given a total of 24 matchbox twenty picks by various members of the tour staff:

During the show, I was given 45 additional picks from a fellow stagehand and pick collector Craig Crosby, bumping his donation total to 70.

I did the Marilyn Manson show on Thurdsay and Blake Shelton on Friday, but had no luck with the guitar techs with donations, but I did find some picks during the load-out. I was also given another Manson pick by a friend who I will identify as "Half of Team Blackout".

Finally, I want to thank "Mark" from the matchbox twenty tour who donated what may very well be the funniest picks I have ever seen

Well, until next time, thanks for looking!

- Chris

Tucci and Nugent and Kid Rock...OH MY!

2008-02-02T17:34:00.000-08:00

As a follow up to the posting on 1/31, I want to take a few extra lines to thank "Tucci" for his donation of 46 picks. I knew I could expect some picks, but I had no idea that the donation would be SO generous! Below is just a sample of only a dozen of the 46 he donated.

I also wanted to give some thanks to the techs on the Kid Rock tour who donated a total of 14 picks, some of which are shown here:

Finally, when I came home from work last night I was surprised to see a package on my table from Ted Nugent's camp. Word of the fundraiser had gotten to them and I received a donation of 16 picks from the Motor City Madman!

This is an incredible donation and really gives me hope that other artists and bands may follow this example and make donations as well.

I know it's been oft mentioned in previous posts, but I am continually amazed and humbled by the generosity of strangers or people I have just met and are willing to help in. To those of you who have donated, thank you. To those of you keeping up with this by reading, please help spread the word.

Another 70 to the pile

2008-01-31T17:37:00.000-08:00

I was awed to be able to add 70 new picks to the collection yesterday. The techs for Kid Rock were great and donated a total of 14 picks. A few fellow stagehands gave ten more and a friend of one of my family members who is known simply as "Tucci" sent me 46 picks that arrived in the mail yesterday. I will scan and post some of these as soon as I have a chance (Saturday is looking good...

Thanks for checking in and keep the donations flowing.

- Chris

A little ahead of myself

2008-01-26T20:39:00.000-08:00

Well, I posted earlier updated totals taking into account last night's Velvet Revolver show donations. Lo and Behold! This afternoon, I went to my mailbox and no less than three separate envelopes arrived with a combined total of 64 additional picks. I have reached out to my pick-collecting network of friends and the response has been great. The unselfishness exhibited has been truly touching.

In fact, Ian Grushka - Bass player from the band New Found Glory - has been generous enough to donate 48 picks of his own and from his band mates. Each one I received is different and they are all pretty cool. Some are downright hilarious. Below are scans of just a sample of what Ian sent.

Also, I received donations from Carson and Sue from Michigan as well as Mike in Illinois. People who have opened their collections unselfishly and donated to the fundraiser. I want to express a special thank you to these three individual donors specifically because I have never met them face-to-face. They responded to the request of a virtual stranger and understood that the cause I am supporting is a worthy one deserving of their time and consideration. Thank you to Carson, Sue, Mike and Ian for setting precedent and hopefully raising the bar to motivate additional donations from other people across the country and around the world.

Overwhelming (in a good way)

2008-01-26T06:54:00.000-08:00

I've got to say that the generosity exhibited so far for this fundraiser has exceeded my expectations. To date I have collected nearly 350 picks and have over $250 in pledges (not including incentives for reaching certain goals) - setting a pace for nearly 4,000 picks and $2,700 by the end of the drive. This is now my benchmark. I will be disappointed if I collect anything less.

Of course, it is depending on the word-of mouth I have started and that which anyone involved is keeping going. I am going to try in the next week or so reach out to some local media and get some broader exposure in order to amplify the pledges and donations. However, I am still counting on you - gentile reader - to spread the word. All the cool people are doing it. You want to be cool, too, don't you?

Speaking of cool, I worked the Velvet Revolver show last night and the guitar techs were tremendously generous with donating picks. I would like to thank them again for their help with the fundraiser. Below is a scan of some of the picks they gave...

Keep 'em coming and keep reading.

Thank you to everyone past, present and future who is getting involved in this cause.

- Chris

Some of what has been donated so far

2008-01-20T07:34:00.000-08:00

Latest donation info (1/12/08)

2008-01-12T12:51:00.000-08:00

Last night I was given 25 picks each from some stagehand friends of mone, Craig Crosby and Mike Bootzin. Mike had almost all different picks including a few I hope can bring in some bucks for the Hospital at auction. Craig gave multiple picks, with many more to come I am told. Either way, it is an additional 50 picks to add to the tally and every time that number goes higher, more money will be going to Children's Hospital.

The interest expressed by the people who have been made aware of this effort has been nothing short of incredible. Support, donations and pledges are all coming in at a good pace, and as word gets out, I expect more. My next move is to try and get some media exposure for the program and use it to grenerate even more donations.

If you know anyone who may be interested in helping, donating or pledging, please do not hesitate to link them to the webpage or this blog. All donations and support is greatly appreciated.

Here is a scan of some of the picks I have collected to date. As things roll on, I will highlight some of the more interesting ones in the collection. Keep checking in!

The pledges start to roll in.

2008-01-08T20:50:00.000-08:00

This afternoon, I began my requests for pledges. What a response! Literally, within minutes I got my first pledge. Soon thereafter, I got more. I got responses from people I do not even know within hours of my initial e-mail. The power of e-mail networking is truly amazing!

Thank you to those of you who have either responded, pledged, checked out the webpage or blog. If we can keep this moving at this rate, I see nothing but a great outcome for this project.

On another note, I am also putting my collection where my mouth is. Aside from running the fundraiser, I have donated 137 picks from my personal collection. I challenge anyone else who is a collector to break this mark. Again, I am not necessarily looking for picks that are of great monetary value. I am going for sheer volume. Duplicates are happily accepted. If you have thirty of the exact same pick, they count as thirty, not one. Because people are starting to back up my big-talk with money, I want to give them a reason to be as excited about this drive as I am.

Anyone who donates more picks than I did will not only be recognized prominently on the webpage and Blog, but will be given a very special gift (I am still working on the details, but trust me, you will not be disappointed). As of now, let's keep it as a informal challenge to see who can / will donate the most. If I can work up a special prize for the top donor, I will make an announcement.

Keep the pledges and donations coming in. I will be posting scans soon of some of the more unique picks donated as well as photos of the entire collection as it grows.

Thank you all or all you have, are and will be doing.

Chris

Off to a great start

2008-01-06T06:08:00.000-08:00

I officially kicked off the pick drive last night at a Goo Goo Dolls show. The guitar techs were great and very understanding. For four guys, they donated 21 picks! That is what I am looking for - volume! The more I collect, the more is donated to the Children's Hospital. Thank you very much for checking in. As soon as I have more to report, I will get it posted!

Chris

And we're off...

2007-12-26T09:33:00.000-08:00

A few months ago, my sister did a fundraising walk for breast cancer research. I was given to ponder this way of raising money for causes and was struck by a thought.

I could do this. A drive not for breast cancer though (albeit a worthy cause), but for a cause that is close to me as the father of two. I want to raise money for the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin.

I will do this. As my thoughts progressed as how to do so, I decided to incorporate a hobby I have been pursuing for nearly 15 years. I am going to collect guitar picks. But not for the sake of collecting them, no. Between January 1 and September 1 (Labor Day), 2008, I will be collecting as many guitar picks from as many bands, artists, people, venues or places as I can. I will be using my connections established over the years and my time from working concerts in the area to build this collection for the cause. I will be taking pledges from people willing to donate. The method is similar to a typical walk-a-thon, except instead of for every mile walked, donations will be for every pick collected. At the end of the end of the drive, I will collect the money from donors (checks only, made out directly to Children's Hospital) and present it to the Hospital with a list of all those who donated money or contributed picks to the drive. I also plan on either donating picks to children in the hospital if I am able to get one / some from a particular artist that interests a child. Otherwise picks will be donated to a local radio station to be auctioned off during their annual fundraiser.

Fortunately, I have needed very limited interaction with the staff at Children's Hospital, but when my daughter needed some tests done, their methods of dealing with her and the overall professionalism that was displayed was astounding. I was struck that they deal exclusively with children, in all ranges of health, with the same demeanor, patience and professionalism every day.

What I came to realize is that the people there deal with things that anyone with a heart would find, at the least, difficult to face - especially on a daily basis. The staff at Children's Hospital perform miracles every day and do it as if it was their calling.

My daughter's condition was merely an infection that cleared up with daily medication and the ability to be at home with her family in familiar surroundings and no limitations to her daily routine of being a kid.

Many more others that are taken care of at Children's Hospital do not have this luxury. Too many are limited to beds or wheelchairs, cannot go home to the comforts they deserve or can only do so for short periods of time.

Kids need to be allowed to be kids. Children's Hospital does whatever they can to make this possible, and for that they need support.

I will be updating this blog on a regular basis with lists of picks donated, names (if authorized) of contributors and a running list of how much money has been pledged, cumulatively, for the cause.

I will also post links to the Children's Hospital of Wisconsin website as well as other similar causes, should you like to research additional donations on your own behalf.

Thanks for following up and thank you in advance for any support you are willing to give.