Hi all,

As I am sure you are aware, Minneapolis and St. Paul are having a tough go of it right now thanks to the federal government and ICE agents terrorizing our city. As a Minnesota native who calls Minneapolis their home, I am hoping to put out a call for relatively small neon work for a raffle I will be managing to raise funds for rent relief for folks sheltering in place and unable to work, and immigration rights groups here in the Twin Cities. My wife and I recently welcomed a new baby, and as joyful as we are, leaving the house has become a huge risk. We cannot support our community with our bodies, since we have a little one who relies on us. Our friends and loved ones are constantly putting themselves in danger by serving as legal observers, protecting daycares and schools, and delivering groceries and other needs to immigrant families at their homes. Multiple friends have been dragged from their cars by ICE agents and detained for 12+ hours at a federal building for filming or following ICE agents, only to be released into the -20 degree weather without their phones or transportation home. At one point last week, the highway was so filled with teargas it was entering the cars of people a mile away. All in response to folks filming federal agents from afar. As you've seen in the news, it's often deadly.

We are so lucky to have such a strong community here, and I hope to raise funds to assist in whatever way I can. So far I have raised over $2,500 for various mutual aid efforts through matching donations, but many artist raffles are having great success and I'd like to lean on the neon community we've built for potential donations to support a raffle for immigrant rent relief and other local support opportunities.

Ask:

- Relatively small, shippable neon artwork that can hang on the wall or sit on a shelf, priced between $250-350 to be raffled off

- High quality pictures of the neon work in a setting that shows off the light of the piece

- Willingness to ship the work either directly to the winner of the raffle or to my house in Minneapolis (I can deliver locally)

- Willingness to part with the work as a donation

I have at least 6 transformers at my house that I can contribute to cut down on your costs, just pumped pieces are fine to send (let me know if they have higher power needs). I understand this is a big ask, and I completely understand if you have too much on your plates right now! We've had some wonderful donations so far and I am hoping for just a few more. The raffle will be advertised online and through various arts organizations in the Twin Cities, and entries will be performed through donations to organizations and proof of donations sent to a secure email address. No money will pass through my personal accounts.

Please get in touch if you have any questions or are willing to participate! Pieces do not need to be shipped quickly, raffle is planned for early February. Email me at lilawestreich@gmail.com or shoot me a text at (507) 261-2643. Thank you so much - sending love to all of you! - Lila / @dinkytown (ig)