Hi there! I'm Sara and, I am not a cry baby. "Don't cry, dry your eye?" Couldn't have said it better myself. I don't get choked up at weddings or around lil' babies. "The Notebook?" Pssshaa! Pass the popcorn, not the tissues.
My dry eye streak ended Saturday when I attended the ultimate tweet-up, #SaveTeecycle at Sprecher Brewery in Glendale.
When those nasty floods came a'knocking back on July 22, they crashed the Cigelske's party. Hard. Without a basement to fill, the water ravaged their home. Tim, his wife Jess, their baby Clara and puppy dog Bella were devastated. Insurance was no help. FEMA who? (read about it at saveteecycle.org)
Hearing of their friend's plight, Twitter came to the rescue. Fundraisers were organized, products and services donated, and virtual ((hugs)) sent. Don't mess with our Twitter family, Mother Nature!
On Saturday night the Milwaukee social media community gathered for the main fundraising event to lend support, sell the T-shirts off our backs (literally), bid on kick booty auction items and turn those virtual hugs into real ones. The gathering was one where you could actually feel the good in the air. Sprecher Brewery graciously donated the venue, and COA provided amazingly yummy complimentary food. More than 200 folks attended and through the magic of the interwebs, more than $10,000 was donated.
When Tim took the stage to thank everyone in attendance, I couldn't help but tear up right along with him. When a live stream popped up on the monitors and a surprise reveal of the finished renovations unfolded, it was all over. Tissues, please. Just call me Sniffles.
There's a whole lot of ick in the world. Turn on the news and it's craptastic this and horribles that. Sometimes one wonders if the bad is winning the karmic war. Then there's an event like #SaveTeecycle and you know in your bones it's all going to be OK. Milwaukee is an amazing town filled to the brim with amazingly generous people. Mother Nature on the other hand? That 'yatch can suck it.
Tim, Jess, Clara and Bella moved into their newly unflooded space on Sunday and the money raised covered all of the restoration costs. Now that's a happy ending I'm proud to relinquish my anti-crybaby title for. Kudos, Milwaukee.
To say Sara is a woman of many hats would be like saying sour gummy worms are delicious: an epic understatement. Besides blogging, vlogging, tweeting and designing, she is a gal about town. Hopping, skipping and jumping all over this fair city to seek out the latest and greatest.
Since moving to Milwaukee right after high school, Sara's ADD has led her to reside in nearly every ZIP code Milwaukee has to offer. She recently moved from the Third Ward to Shorewood, and though the quieter scene isn't sucking, she vows to prove the burbs' swagger is right up there with the city's.
The Milwaukee area is one of many hats. And Sara's determined to try on each and every one of 'em.
