I am writing you on behalf of Estill County 21st Century, Inc. D/B/A Estill Development Alliance in hopes that you may be able to help us further our mission. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on community and economic development in Estill County, Kentucky, as well as neighboring communities.

The Covid-19 pandemic has affected us all, and we at EDA are hoping to help our community emerge from these unprecedented times with a renewed sense of hope for the future of our small town.

We are holding an online/silent auction event on Giving Tuesday, November 30th, 2021. The event will be virtual and live streamed on social media. While this will be an excellent opportunity for us to feature our organization and other community organizations, as well as those donors and sponsors who help make the event possible, our ultimate goal is to raise funds for a few specific community undertakings, and we are humbly asking you to donate items for us to auction.

First, we are creating a new program in partnership with the Estill Arts Council and the Estill County Historical and Genealogical Society called SHADE - Supporting Heritage, Arts & Development in Estill. The program will focus on public engagement and fund service projects around the community that enhance arts, heritage, and community and economic development.

Second, River City Players Community Theatre Group is actively redeveloping our historic downtown Mack Theater. The marquee is in a vulnerable position and needs immediate attention as CDBG grant work is about to begin. We want to contribute to the marquee work to keep that project on point and moving forward.

Finally, our nonprofit has lost a significant amount of funding throughout the pandemic, and we need assistance to get back on our feet from a general operations standpoint. We will be splitting funds raised from this auction three ways among these three causes, and we hope to raise at least $5,000 for each cause. Our donors will be recognized at least 6 times over the course of the 3-hour livestream, as well as in the sponsored posts on social media.

Thank you for your consideration,

Joe Crawford, Executive Director