Invitation to help the Hurricane Relief effort (pen-related)

[penwash]

**** IMPORTANT: Due to the possibilities of this fund raising effort violating the local law because only authorized non-profit organization can do anything that even remotely resemble a raffle, I had to stop this effort and refund all the donations. I can't give away the pen either apparently because of this. So it's a bummer and the sad thing is, those who needed the funds will be the loser in this.


Fellow fountain pen enthusiasts, I think it's time for us to show those who are suffering that we care about them. I live in Texas and know some people who are impacted by the hurricane damages. And we all can imagine that the need for help would extend months past the hurricane itself.

So I want to rally for those people in need. If you need some quick statistics to see the extend of the damages read here.


How do we do this?

I am offering this Pilot Custom 67. An older sibling of the Custom 74 which to my eyes and to many others who agreed with me, is also the more handsome and elegant between the two.



I chose this pen because it's not something you can order off retail stores, it is only sold in Japan back in the 1980's. So arguably it's a vintage pen today. And more importantly, the quality of the pen is excellent. I have in the past, and would not have any trouble at all selling this for $150 or even more on Pen Agora. So you could win the pen by donating as little as $5.

But friends, this is not about the pen, this is about helping others in need. Therefore to maximize the donation amount, I'm doing an online "raffle".

The method is simple:

1. If you want to pitch in, send increments of $5 to my paypal account: REMOVED as friends/family. Put as a note: "Hurricane Relief"
2. Each $5 will count as one raffle "ticket", so the more you donate, the more "ticket" will be under your name, increasing your chance to win the pen.
3. I will let this go for one week. Then at the end of that, I will draw randomly a paypal email account who donated and someone will win the pen.
4. Then I will donate 100% of the donation to [J.J Watts Flood Relief](https://www.youcaring.com/victimsofh...eharvey-915053). Most of you know who he is, but for those who don't, he's a Houston Texans defensive end, an NFL player with a big heart.

Why Should I Trust You?

You don't have to participate. I simply care about those who are affected by the Hurricane damages, and you may as well, so why don't we join hands. You can see the statistics on the donations at https://redeempens.nextcoder.com/info/ and I will post updates periodically on Reddit and on my Instagram during the week of this fund raising.

That's it! Search your heart, show them you care to pitch in. Let's go!

[ShugPug]

Great cause. Donation sent

[kevmid]

Likewise. Great idea and great pen too!

[fountainpagan]

I have donated, but don't want to enter the raffle, Penwash.

Thank you for what you do.

[grainweevil]

If you're in a giving mood, you might also consider donating to Nepal, Bangladesh, and India who are all also suffering from terrible flooding caused by natural phenomena. They don't rejoice in quite the same resources that Texas does.

[penwash]

If you're in a giving mood, you might also consider donating to Nepal, Bangladesh, and India who are all also suffering from terrible flooding caused by natural phenomena. They don't rejoice in quite the same resources that Texas does.

I agree with you wholeheartedly on your first sentence. But your second one (bolded above) gave me a pause.

What does suffering has to do with the resources available? The truth is, we all have to always be giving and helping others in need regardless the nationality or place. Suffering is suffering, you don't suffer less just because others have more resources around you. Unless I misunderstood your sentence in which case I apologize

I am rallying for this particular cause because I feel the connection (fellow Texans). I am hoping that someone who feel the connection with Nepal and Bangladesh would also rally for those affected by floods. I would gladly participate as those who participated in this particular fund raising.

[LeFreak]

I hate to bring this up, but this is an illegal lottery that's in violation of the law.

You can't run a raffle unless you are a registered non profit organization.

https://www.thebalance.com/guide-to-...tteries-896872

[penwash]

I hate to bring this up, but this is an illegal lottery that's in violation of the law.

You can't run a raffle unless you are a registered non profit organization.

https://www.thebalance.com/guide-to-...tteries-896872

Which is why I quoted the "raffle" word in the post above to give an idea of the similar concept.

I don't sell raffle tickets.

[LeFreak]

By requiring a donation to win, it's a raffle by definition.

Since you said you were already aware of the law, do as you will. But it is still illegal.

[penwash]

By requiring a donation to win, it's a raffle by definition.

Since you said you were already aware of the law, do as you will. But it is still illegal.

You know what, here's what the definition of a raffle according to Texas Law:

(6)"Raffle" means the award of one or more prizes by chance at a single occasion among a single pool or group of persons who have paid or promised a thing of value for a ticket that represents a chance to win a prize.

In this case, there isn't any ticket purchased because there is none made available.
I am very clear in stating that any donation money will be given as a 100% donation to a well-known Hurricane Relief effort.
I also said in the above post, that this is not about the pen. This is about helping other in need.
The pen is simple a token of appreciation from me for those who donated.

Now, if you're an attorney registered in Texas specializing in raffle law and you're advising me that this is unlawful, I'd ask you to tell me what then should I do?

[LeFreak]

Look, I'm not going to argue this, but by requiring a purchase for entry, that's a ticket. A virtual ticket is still a ticket. It's called consideration in the law.

I'm a non profit lawyer and this crap comes up all the time. Do what you want, you're not paying me to represent you. I only brought it up because I thought you might care.

Incidentally, Matt Armstrong had a similar issue on his blog about a year ago.

[penwash]

Look, I'm not going to argue this, but by requiring a purchase for entry, that's a ticket. A virtual ticket is still a ticket. It's called consideration in the law.

I'm a non profit lawyer and this crap comes up all the time. Do what you want, you're not paying me to represent you. I only brought it up because I thought you might care.

Incidentally, Matt Armstrong had a similar issue on his blog about a year ago.

I'm sorry, I don't want to argue with you either. In fact, I'm grateful that you took the time to let me know this.

Alright, since it's not my intention to break any laws, I'll tell those who donated that I can't give the pen away anymore, and anyone who wants their donation refunded can simply tell me.

**UPDATE: I refunded ALL the collected donations and I bless those who dropped me a note promising me that they will allocate the fund to the same cause some other way.

[kevmid]

That's a shame. I guess once the refunds occur everyone could donate to the J.J Watts Flood Relief cause directly or elsewhere.

Thanks very much for trying!

[VertOlive]

How about a "silent" auction for the pen and donate the proceeds?

[penwash]

How about a "silent" auction for the pen and donate the proceeds?

A good suggestion and I've thought about it also.

I'll sleep over it, right now I'm kinda bummed for the people who could have been helped with the collected funds.
I don't think an auction for that pen alone will generate a comparable amount to the collected one (that now has been all refunded to the donators).

[fountainpagan]

Where is this forum registered? UK, Us, other? Maybe it would be interesting to see what the legislation is in the resgistration country of the forum, and deciding accordingly.
Otherwise, Penwash, here is what someone did in France to sell her house:
In France too, raffles are forbiden. She organised a quizz. You could buy as many tickets as you wanted, to have more possibilities of having your answers to be picked. She randomly picked up one ticket, at the end, among all the correct responses to the entire quizz. That ticket won the house.
She was allowed to sell her house this way, because it was considered as the prize of a game.
Just my two cents.

[grainweevil]

Unless I misunderstood your sentence in which case I apologize

Apology accepted. It was merely a factual observation.

[penwash]

Just as a closure note, the pen finally was auctioned off successfully.
A pen enthusiast in New Mexico won the pen and I have donated 100% of the payment to the J.J Watt Flood Relief which was concluded today (9/15/17).

Thank you for all the support. It's a little help, but it's a little that we have so we help.