Help the Homeless with eBay's Exclusive Limited Edition Millennium Bear Auction

After seeing a public service announcement for the National Coalition for the Homeless, seven-year-old Jacob of Dallas, Texas, wanted to help children who had no permanent place to live. Now, thanks to his mom Myrtle Cecil, eBay, and quite possibly, you, this thoughtful young man's goal is about to become a reality.

"We were in Illinois and saw a shelter in Arizona featured in a TV show," Myrtle recalls. "They showed children who were 10 or 12 years old and couldn't read. The children were trying to learn as much as they could in the school they were attending because they didn't know where they'd be staying the next day.

"My son asked me if what was presented in the show was real. He thought homeless people were just the older men that you see with the signs by the side of the freeways. I had to tell him this was real. He said, 'Mom, this has to stop.' Even though I didn't know what we were going to do, I promised him that we would do something."

Myrtle, a well-known Beanies collector, author, and lecturer (she has almost every Ty® Beanie ever made), says she decided that the Internet could go a long way to educate people on the problem. "Solving the homeless problem is really just a matter of public awareness," she says. "The fact that Jacob thought homeless people were only adults made me realize that a lot of people must feel this way."

Myrtle checked out the Web site for the National Coalition for the Homeless and found that, although the adult situation is significant, the homeless population that has grown the most over the last few decades has been children. She then contacted George at eBay who she had worked with in conjunction with eBay's participation in collecting shows produced by Mary Beth's Beanie World Monthly (an online magazine dedicated to Beanie Babies). She was delighted to find that George was interested in helping her create an eBay auction to benefit her cause, as part of a pilot test on eBay for charity auctions.

Now all Myrtle needed was an item to sell. "I thought, 'Sally Winey is one of the hottest plush animal designers right now. If we could get a set of bears made, maybe something having to do with the millennium, that would be the way to go'." Myrtle contacted Sue Rizzo, who she knew from the Beanie community. In addition to being the owner of LaGrange, Illinois' Antiques and More, Sue handles all of the business ventures for Sally Winey, a formerly renowned designer of Ty Beanies who now designs for Planet Plush as well as her own line of popular limited-edition plush bears.

Sue contacted Sally about the idea, and Sally was happy to help. As a baby-boomer mom with a son born in the last decade of this century, Myrtle inadvertently happened on a perfect theme for the auction items. "I came up with the idea of having a set of limited-edition plush bears - a millennium bear and a Y2K (Year 2000) bear, but I hadn't decided what to call them," Myrtle says. "It didn't occur to me to name them after myself and my son, but Sally thought Myrtle was a great name, and since she really liked it, that was OK with us." How did Jacob respond to having a toy bear named after him? "He thought it was great," Myrtle says.

Sue took care of getting the bears made. Meanwhile, Myrtle further explained to Jacob how the auction would work and where the money would be going. Jacob was quite pleased.

The limited edition, Year 2000 bears named Millennium Myrtle and Y2K Jacob will be auctioned as a set. Millennium Myrtle, with her black feather boa and black ribbon headdress (complete with a gold lame´ rose) is poised to dazzle any New Year's Eve 1999 crowd. Her companion, Y2K Jacob, looks dapper in his black top hat (also with a gold lame´ rose), walking stick, and sash. Both Myrtle's headdress and Y2K's sash are hand-lettered in gold with their names. As an added bonus, the bears come accessorized with a miniature plastic champagne glass and a miniature plastic bottle of champagne.

Additionally, both bears have plush heads, jointed arms and legs, and their tummies have a special feature. Their torsos are bean-filled, so you can change their shape a little when you poke or tickle them!

Each bear set is sequentially numbered and signed by Sally Winey (on the bottom of the foot). Bears are accompanied by a matching numbered certificate signed by Myrtle and Jacob.

The bears also include a story Myrtle created for them which reflects her own real-life story . "The story is about a baby-boomer mom whose most memorable moment as a child was watching John Glenn go up in space," Myrtle says. "Ironically, almost four decades later, my son and I watched him go back up in space this year."

Only 250 sets of bears were made. Of these, 240 will be sold through Myrtle's eBay auctions. "These sets are sure to be highly collectible and much sought-after due to their extremely low production, and the secondary market value of Y2K collectibles and Sally Winey limited editions," Myrtle says.

Each auction will have a starting bid of $300, with sets expected to sell for $350 or more. Bears will be auctioned in December according to their set number. The excitement will build until the final set - limited edition Number 1 - is auctioned off last. Click here for additional details. Click here for the auctions.

Unlike Sally Winey bears that take six weeks to arrive after ordering, these bears are ready to be shipped immediately after each transaction has been completed. One hundred percent of the net proceeds of Myrtle's auctions will be donated to the National Coalition for the Homeless. Myrtle is hoping to raise more than $35,000 for the Coalition through these auctions.

Having grown up poor, Myrtle says she can really relate to this cause. "I know what it's like to be poor," she says. I grew up in West Virginia as one of nine kids. My father died when I was three and my mother raised all nine of us in a four-room shack. There were programs they had for underprivileged kids that we participated in. For example, I remember that our church gave us a quilt and it made all the difference in the world to us. But you know, no matter how poor we were, my mom was always helping someone else."

Myrtle says that she hopes that by getting as much media attention as possible, the auctions will enlighten people and let them know that they can all do something to help the homeless. "If each person does something, whether it be buying one of these bears or helping through a homeless program at their place of worship or school, we can all make a world of difference together."

What has been Myrtle's best experience while working on this auction project? "It is so rewarding that an idea that seemed so far-fetched is really happening. I thought the reaction would be 'are you out of your mind!" When I called George at eBay, it was wonderful that he was genuinely interested in really making this happen. It's also especially important that I am able to tell my son, 'Remember I promised that we will do something? Well, we're doing it!"

eBay would like to recognize the efforts of all its members who hold auctions benefiting charity. The Salley Winey designer bear auction is a special pilot auction in which Myrtle has worked directly with the National Coalition for the Homeless. We plan to have official guidelines in place in 1999 to address future charity auctions. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact charity@ebay.com