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Bring Bobs Belongings Back!

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About Rob (aka Bob)
Meet my good friend, Rob (aka Bob to most people). He's an artist in every sense of the word - painting, ceramics, music, wood working, sculpting... You name it! He has dedicated his life to developing his fine art skills and sharing them with friends, their children, and the community, through teaching and a zillion selfless acts.

Examples of Rob's kindness:
For the Kids
- Every Christmas, Rob baked gingerbread houses from scratch, artfully decorated with sugar windows, LED lights and icing. It took him upteen hours and many late nights, and in return he only asked for families to cover the cost of supplies. He also hosted gingerbread decorating events for children at the local community centre (a barn!).
Teaching
- Rob is well spoken, and never hesitates to share his extensive knowledge of art theory, sculpting techniques, and painting. He volunteered to teach our ceramics classes whenever our instructor was away at art shows.
- He taught me how to sculpt, build a plaster mould and create an amazing bulldog sculpture for my family friend - just for fun!
Compassion
- I remember him rescuing an injured animal from the roadside and taking it to the vet for care, paying for it out of his own pocket.
Community
- He volunteered yearly in the neighbourhood Halloween Fright Fest, designing Fright Fest effects, carving amazing pumpkins, building giant puppets and performing along side parents during the haunted hay rides for kids.
Neighborly Neighbor
- Where to begin! He designed, casted & created the ceramic trophy for the neighbourhood rib fest competition.
- He was a volunteer judge for kids' decorated bikes for the 4th of July bike parade.
- His craftsman skills were often called into action, helping neighbours with countless home projects.
- If you know Chicago, you know the snow is no joke.  Rob would snow-blow driveways for the neighbours as far as 3 blocks away!

So you can see... Rob is a kind soul who is there whenever anyone needs help - no question. He's one of those people that just gives and gives... and gives some more!

But he never asks for help for himself. And surviving as an artist can be hard, especially when he doesn't ask for much in return.

In order to make ends meet, he sacrificed his passion to work long hours as an industrial designer for a few years. Unfortunately, that company closed their Chicago office, leaving Rob in a bind. He has been forced out of his IL home of 21 years. His only choice was to move to AZ, where his family lives, bringing only what he could fit into his small car.

After finding caring homes for his pets (aka his IL family), he left behind most of his possessions and said goodbye to all his close friends, neighbors, and community of 30 years.

Right now, Rob needs help.
He wants to look at this major change as a way to launch himself into a new, positive, passionate, art-filled life. I want to help him make the trek to Illinois to retrieve his years of artwork, artist supplies, craftsman tools and personal possessions before it's too late. He needs these to really have a shot at successfully restarting an artist's life in AZ, especially during these hard times under the influence of COVID-19.

Please help Rob.
He and I would really appreciate your kindness, no matter how big or small.

Here are some ways you can help!

- Donate through GoFundMe (anything helps!)
- Rob is Bob, and he wants to give back. Once he's back on his feet, he is offering to send a small watercolor painting to every donor contributing over $50. Please provide your mailing address to him.

- Work - If you have connections in the art community in Goodyear,
AZ where Rob may find work teaching, or selling his art, we would love to hear from you!

Some of his art can be found on his website  (links at page bottom).

Organizer and beneficiary

Vanessa Lee
Organizer
Quartzsite, AZ
Robert Stotts
Beneficiary

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