NEED YOUR HELP

Anyone who reads this . . . we need your help.

I've previously written about the Seattle Memorial Temple Project--the Temple of Light--but I'm making a rather urgent plea for two types of assistance:  we need money and we need labor.

MONEY
This amorphous, organic, volunteer group that's been meeting since the March shootings in Capitol Hill has raised a bunch of money.  I don't have the figures on the top of my head, but we raised and donated thousands of dollars to the victims families and survivors before we started raising money for the Temple.  We held fundraisers, have been soliciting donations, and have secured non-profit, tax deductible status through the kindness of The Shunpike, a great local arts organization.

This project is an amazing demonstration of what a commiunity can do, outside the contstraints of an "official" organization.  But we're a bit short.  About $4,800 short of what it will take to realize the project's vision.  I don't typically disclose this sort of stuff, but Dia and I have donated about $500 to this crazy idea that the community can create an amazingly meaningful public art project that will be available to the city of Seattle.  If you have a spare $10, $50, $100 then think about throwing it to this project.  If your company has matching funds then you've just become a double hero. 

You can find out how to donate by going here.

LABOR
We have a mere 11 days until we're set to install the Temple in a very prominent location at Seattle Center, under the shadow of the Space Needle. 

And truth be told, we're way behind in the build.  We have a workshop space  in West Seattle  (just over the bridge, <5 min from downtown) and we need people.  Regardless of whether you can spare some change from your wallet, we need people to cut, drill, bolt, hammer, and sand.  If you want to bring cookies that would be good too. 

I'm tied up in strategery sessions for my day job in until Thursday evening, but folks are building every night.  On Tuesday there will be a potluck/work party at 6pm intended to pump up the volume (directions below).

We're in the home stretch and any help you can provide will be valuable.  Give money.  Show up an dwork.  Or blog this and create a stir.  It doesn't matter what you do--this is highly distributed, decentralized excellence in action--just do something.  Pretty please.

Directions to the Temple Workshop

Coming over the West Seattle bridge, take the first exit (delridge),
and follow it to the right, Marginal way. As you double under the
bridge, stay in the middle lane, and follow it right back under the
bridge. Before you complete the turn, the parking lot comes up on you
fast on the right hand side- chain link fence at a warehouse. Turn in
to the lot, and you'll see a big warehouse. The door is all the way to
the left facing the building, that is to say against the fence on the
street side.

If you overshoot the building, there's a parking lot on the far side
of the building too, and maybe we'll have that end's door open- worst
case you have to walk around.