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News 2009
- June 11, 2009
- THE ULTIMATE eBay ITEM: A POWER LUNCH WITH WARREN BUFFETT
ANNUAL eBay Giving Works CHARITY AUCTION JUNE 21 – 26 BENEFITS SAN FRANCISCO’S GLIDE FOUNDATION
Top Bidder Wins Lunch in New York City with World’s Most Successful Investor
- SAN FRANCISCO, CA – It’s a tough economy – all the more reason to have lunch with one of the most experienced and successful investors of the past fifty years – Warren Buffett. The Annual Warren Buffett Lunch Charity Auction, a high-demand item listed on eBay, benefits San Francisco’s Glide Foundation. Over the past six years with eBay Giving Works, the winning bids have ranged from just over $200,000 to last year’s winning bid of more than $2.1 million for the chance to have lunch with Mr. Buffett. Bidding for this year’s auction opens Sunday, June 21st at 7:00 p.m. PDT, and will close on Friday, June 26 at 7:00 p.m. PDT.
- For the past ten years, Mr. Buffett has generously offered a power lunch to benefit the Glide Foundation. It is a one-of-a-kind opportunity. Last year’s winner, Zhao Danyang of Pureheart China Growth Investment Fund paid $2.1 million for his lunch with Buffett – a record-making charity bid for eBay.
- “Mr. Buffett’s generosity and long-time commitment to Glide’s work is amazing,” said Reverend Cecil Williams, Glide’s founder. “These times are especially hard for people at the lowest income levels. We put 100% of the charity auction proceeds into the community – feeding the poor, providing clothes, shelter, affordable housing and free healthcare to those who need it most.”
- The winning bidder will have the opportunity to invite up to seven friends to join him or her and Mr. Buffett for lunch at Smith & Wollensky in New York City. The bidding starts at $25,000 and all bidders will be pre-qualified through Kompolt, specialists in Cause Branded Social Media. Pre-qualifying began on May 4; to pre-qualify, visit: www.GlideLunchWithWarrenBuffett.com
. For more information about Kompolt, go to: www.kompolt.com . - The lunch will be listed through eBay Giving Works at www.GlideLunchWithWarrenBuffett.com and hosted in New York by Smith & Wollensky New York City. eBay Giving Works, one of eBay’s five Global Citizenship initiatives, harnesses the power of its 88 million active community members to be a force for good by empowering them to buy and sell items that support their favorite nonprofit. In 2008 alone, the eBay community donated more than $36 million to charities through eBay Giving Works. Alan Stillman, founder of Smith & Wollensky, has generously agreed to donate $10,000 to Glide for the privilege of hosting the lunch.
About Glide
- Located at Ellis and Taylor in the Tenderloin, one of San Francisco's harshest urban environments, Glide Foundation is an oasis that has served the poor and disenfranchised for over 40 years. From serving nearly one million meals a year, to operating a professional medical clinic, to providing affordable housing, to youth job training, to offering weekly spiritual celebrations at Glide Church, and much more – Glide touches the lives of many people. Glide has helped thousands of disenfranchised and poor people get back on their feet and find their way to jobs, housing and spiritual fulfillment.
- For more information about the Warren Buffett Lunch listing, please contact Tod Thorpe in the Glide Foundation Development office at (415) 674-6072 or at tthorpe@glide.org. For more information about Glide Foundation please call (415) 674-6000 or visit www.Glide.org .