In this episode of the Appeal Podcast, we sit down with Dave Silver, the Founder of Operation Yellow Ribbon, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting veterans during deployment and upon their return home.

Dave shares the inspiring story behind the inception of Operation Yellow Ribbon, detailing how a simple desire to support our service men and women, who are deployed overseas and how it evolved into a widespread movement of community support.

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Hello, hello, hello.

2

See, you know, I get excited when Pearl

Jam things happen and they started their

3

tour on Saturday.

4

I got my dark matter hat on and my shirt.

5

And, you know, obviously, hail hail

auctions is attributed to my favorite song

6

of theirs.

7

And, you know, what we do here on the

appeal wouldn't be possible if not for

8

you.

9

So as always, I just wanted to say thanks.

10

my pleasure.

11

My pleasure.

12

You know, hey, look, people's.

13

Technology will always happen, but you

know what?

14

It's not life -changing people like

seriously, so I'm glad you're you're a

15

better mood after listening to intro Of

course.

16

Yeah, I'm always in a good mood.

17

What is there not to be happy about we're

alive and kicking the Sun is shining and

18

you know, they peel wouldn't be possible

without you and brilliant be media and

19

hail hail auctions would not be possible

without our guests today and

20

without his mentorship and his guidance,

you know, and just his support and his

21

encouragement over the last year or so as

I've gotten to know him, you know, this

22

idea wouldn't have come to fruition and I

wouldn't be a licensed auctioneer and

23

doing all the things I'm doing now.

24

So I'm excited for you to get to meet and

our guests to get to meet Mr.

25

Chris Hensley.

26

So Sia, why don't you take a back seat,

bring Chris up and we'll bring you back on

27

stage as we say goodbye.

28

Awesome.

29

What's happening, man?

30

I, you know, I don't know if you heard

Sia's and my conversation before we

31

brought you on, but I just can't say

enough about you and the person you are

32

and the friendship we've developed and the

mentorship you've provided to me over the

33

last year.

34

You know, as, as fate would have it,

right?

35

I've been running a charity event for, for

quite some time and using another great

36

auctioneer who we're going to have as a

guest on a future show.

37

But we had a committee last year and they

wanted to interview a few auctioneers and

38

the committee chose you.

39

And little did I know a year later you'd

be one of my better friends in life and

40

one of my greatest support systems.

41

So before I keep going and gushing about

you and tearing up, Chris, why don't you

42

introduce yourself and let folks know a

little bit about you.

43

Yeah, thanks Chris.

44

So my name is Chris Hensley, you know,

auctioneer.

45

Love doing what I do.

46

It's my passion.

47

You know, I tell people all the time, this

is the thing that I'm best at in life.

48

So when you see me on stage, that's as

good as you're ever going to see me.

49

I apologize in these next 30 minutes here

on screen, probably not going to be my

50

best, but you're going to see my passion

for auctioneering come through for sure.

51

And yeah, Chris, it's been, it's been so

great getting to know you, you know, I

52

think you and Sia and I all have.

53

music in common, you know, different

flavors probably.

54

I know you are nuts about Pearl Jam.

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I'm nuts about my own things, but I was

actually going to ask you about that later

56

on.

57

So don't don't give up.

58

I don't want the cat out of the bag.

59

Yeah, it's a music for sure.

60

Yeah.

61

So happy to be on the appeal.

62

Hope to come back again in the future and

like talk shop and, you know, let's go.

63

Yeah.

64

No, listen, you know, and as we've gotten

to know each other, you know,

65

auctioneering is your passion, but it's

not.

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also your only career, right?

67

You have a passion for raising funds for

great causes 24 seven, whether it's on a

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stage for other great charities and you

personally and professionally raise, you

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know, endless amounts of money for great

work with Northwestern.

70

So why don't you talk a little bit about

that too?

71

Cause that's just so admirable as well.

72

Yeah, thanks Chris.

73

So yeah, so I co -lead the Northwestern

Memorial Foundation here in the Chicago

74

area, you know, raising money to,

75

to make what is an exceptional healthcare

system even better.

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And yeah, we raised, you know, in the last

three years, we've raised about $140

77

million a year.

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We're on a path right now to hopefully

achieve about 200, $250 million a year.

79

And you know, that's great.

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I love doing that because, you know,

healthcare, I think it should be a human

81

right.

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I think everybody should have access to

healthcare.

83

You know, I know, you know, through your

Walking Tall movement, mental health care

84

is an important issue.

85

I wish we as a society would look at

mental health care like we look at

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physical health care.

87

We don't yet, but we'll get there.

88

Yep.

89

And so, you know, the work that I do

during the day is critical.

90

It feeds my soul.

91

And it's just this great dichotomy to have

that long term kind of slow burn

92

fundraising during the day.

93

And then this immediate gratification

fundraising on Thursday, Friday, Saturday

94

nights at leading auctions.

95

Yeah.

96

You said it best.

97

The immediate gratification, right?

98

Of the auctioneering business is so fun.

99

And so before I give my take on it, how

did you then, taking your passion for

100

raising funds at Northwestern and doing

great events and creating great

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relationships, turn that into, we call it

a side hustle, but like,

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I call it two careers, man, because like

you're always working events and you're

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always raising money for auction for great

organizations.

104

So how did you become an auctioneer?

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Yeah.

106

Yeah, it's a great question.

107

So I built a gala for I used before

Northwestern.

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I worked for the American Cancer Society

and I built a gala called the Black and

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White Ball.

110

And when I say I, I mean, you know, me and

a team of people.

111

But, you know, it was kind of my baby.

112

And so this was in the.

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depths of the great recession in 2009.

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In fact, if I remember right, our event

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And if I, if I remember the track of the S

and P 500, it hit its bottom on March 9th

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of 2009.

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Right.

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So we're launching a gala literally in the

ashes of the great recession, right.

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In March of 2009.

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And, you know, it wasn't a terrible event.

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We hired an auctioneer.

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you know, we, we, we didn't have a chair,

chair dropped out.

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a month before, two months before kind of

thing.

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And it was like by the seat of our pants,

we raised $120 ,000, right?

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But that was good enough and we secured a

good chair for the second year.

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And then we secured this fantastic

auctioneer who, if I'm your mentor, Greg

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Dellinger, the G -Man is my mentor, right?

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So Greg came and served as our auctioneer

in that second year.

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And we went from like 120 in that first

year to 360 in the second year.

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We went to 500 in the third year.

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and, you know, I sat in the audience and

I've done this, you know, I've worked in

132

nonprofits for years.

133

So I sat in the audience watching

auctioneers.

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some were great, some were terrible.

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and, Greg was that great one.

136

Right.

137

And so, you know, watching him was so much

fun that I reached out to him and I said,

138

Hey, can we grab lunch?

139

Right.

140

And so we grabbed lunch and I said, you

know, I'd love to do what you do.

141

and he, and he with.

142

You know, as if you know, Greg, you know,

he's just the most encouraging,

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supportive, positive force out there.

144

And he said, Chris, you should absolutely

do it.

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There are more events than there are

auctioneers.

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Right.

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And so there'll be plenty of work for you.

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Right.

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And so what did I do?

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I thoroughly ignored him for five years.

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Right.

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But then fast forward to 2016, I was at an

event and the auctioneer was bombing, was

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bombing.

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Right.

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My girlfriend leaned over to me and she

said, this auctioneer is terrible.

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And she didn't know anything about

auctioneering, right?

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And so I knew if like, if people who

hadn't seen a lot of auctioneers in

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practice knew what a good one and what a

bad one looked like that this was a bad

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one.

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And so I called the executive director of

the organization the next week and I said,

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hey, you left a lot of money in the room.

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I think I can raise more money for you

when you do this again.

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And to prove it to me and to prove it to

you, I'll do it for free.

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And so I did that first one for free in

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and still have it on my iPhone.

166

It was the most natural thing I have ever

done.

167

What you see on stage today is roughly

what came out of me in that very moment,

168

right?

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And so I just found this passion.

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Give me a microphone, give me an audience

of three or four or 500 people, and let me

171

squeeze as much money out of them as

possible for a great cause.

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And let me help them feel great also.

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Let me help you feel great about giving to

a great cause because when they feel great

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about it, they're going to give more money

to it, right?

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I'll stop.

176

I'll stop.

177

I'll let you get a word.

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No, no.

179

Here's what I was going to say.

180

Yeah.

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You know, truly like if somebody were to

ask me like, Chris, how did you become an

182

auctioneer?

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Like I would say, listen to Chris Hensley

because that's like exactly my story,

184

right?

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Like I created my own event in my past

employer raising money for a scholarship

186

fund, the sports themed event and had

187

keynote speakers and lo and behold, you

know, as I said earlier, as fate would

188

have it, we chose you and Chris Cellios,

who's a friend of mine, was our keynote

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and the three of us were behind stage and

I'll never forget it, Chris, you know, the

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three Chris's believe it or not, we're

standing there and Shelley goes, man,

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you're really good on the mic and, you

looked me dead in the eye and you're like,

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yeah, you are.

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And I was like, you know what?

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I hear that every year.

195

So every time I do my event, I do the same

thing like Chris, why don't you do that

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more?

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And I was like, forget about it.

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I would ignore people.

199

Right.

200

And, now here I am.

201

So it's just so cool to hear how the

stories of, of, you know, professions and

202

passions come to be and in your own

company now, bid raise bid, you know, talk

203

about some of the clientele you work with

and some of the amazing options you've

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been a part of.

205

I know there's some things that have to

stick out.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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I, you know, so I, I fall in love with

every one of the clients that I have.

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Right.

210

You know, probably three, four times a

year, I end up giving like part of my

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feedback to the client because I'm just in

the moment motivated as, as the audience

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is motivated.

213

I get just as motivated.

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Right.

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And so, yeah.

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So, so, you know, I've, I've been working

with the clients, big and small for seven

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years now, you know, probably three years

ago, we're coming right out of COVID.

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I think I did about 25 events.

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Two years ago, I did about 30 events.

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Last year, I did 50.

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And this year, I just booked my 60th event

for the year.

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So I'm doing this pretty much every Friday

and Saturday night.

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Some Wednesdays and Thursdays as well, an

occasional Tuesday and Sunday, that kind

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of thing.

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Mondays are the rare days for auctions,

but they do happen.

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I've done one.

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And so yeah, you know, everything from

like Special Olympics, Illinois that I

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absolutely love, you know, Amanda and the

team over there, you know, to Mercy Home.

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I did them for the first time last year,

doing them again this year.

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Catholic charities do their St.

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Nick ball with a thousand people.

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You know, the first year we, we went from

350 ,000 to 1 .3 million in fundraising.

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Last year we beat that with the Ricketts

family as chairs.

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You know, and so it just is like this most

special and fulfilling job I've ever had.

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And I use the word job because I don't

know what else to call it, but it has

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never once Chris felt like work, never

once felt like work.

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Yeah, no, we, you know, I, I got done with

an event a couple of weeks ago and as you

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and I do, we text back and forth,

comparing notes and asking each other how

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the evening went.

240

And, you know, I made a comment and it

really has stuck with me, you know,

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One of my past passions and it still is,

and one of my past careers as you know,

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was baseball.

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I was fortunate to play collegiately and

coach for a long time.

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And, you know, I like in getting on stage

and knowing I raised a bunch of money for

245

a great cause to, you know, throw in a

seven inning jam, beating Illinois to go

246

to the big 10 tournament.

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Like that rush of adrenaline, that, that

competitiveness, but in a different light,

248

knowing that you're doing it for good is

like so.

249

So rushing, right?

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And of course, as you said, I have my own

passions for mental health for various

251

reasons with the Walking Tall movement.

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But knowing that I could use my skill set,

as you do, and my personality and my

253

energy to better others' cause is just so

cool.

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Because let's face it, not everybody is

outgoing as you or I.

255

And so to grab that mic and get on stage

and make a fool of yourself and ask

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somebody for...

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$100 ,000 like not everybody's got those

cojones.

258

Right?

259

Yeah.

260

Yeah.

261

How'd that happen?

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You know?

263

Yeah, it just, you know, my granddad was a

Methodist minister, so that probably had a

264

lot to do with it.

265

I think I got that DNA strand.

266

You know, some of my buddies may be

watching out there today.

267

We used to play punk rock and post -punk

bands in the eighties.

268

You know, I had a black mohawk and all

that kind of stuff.

269

So I crave the stage, right?

270

I love to be on stage.

271

I love to, you know, meet people.

272

you know, I like, what I say is I get to

go to 60 parties a year and for a portion

273

of that party, I get to be the center of

attention.

274

And when I'm the center of attention, I

get to help that organization advance

275

their mission.

276

Right.

277

And so whether that mission is mental

health or it's a school or, you know,

278

it's, it's a disease that we're trying to

battle against.

279

you know, the, the, the more that I can

bring, the, the more money we have the

280

opportunity to raise.

281

Right.

282

Yeah, you're right.

283

Like, real quick, I'll say you said it

perfectly, right?

284

Like our passion for music, right?

285

Like you feel like almost you're on stage

as a rock star, not that you have the full

286

of such, but you could command the room

and you're using that command for such

287

good, right?

288

And you do it so perfectly.

289

So I wanted to, sorry, this could cut you

off, but keep going.

290

But I had to just drop that in.

291

Yeah.

292

Yeah.

293

I mean, you know, I, so,

294

You'll feel this also, and you probably

have already.

295

You'll know the nights where you nailed

it, and you'll know the nights where you

296

just weren't quite on.

297

But God, I had this night just this past

Saturday night.

298

As you know, I was doing writers' theater

in Glencoe, this incredible arts

299

organization in Glencoe that not only

brings the arts to their audiences at

300

their theater,

301

but also takes the arts and arts education

out to schools and out to kids who might

302

not otherwise have art in their life,

right?

303

And kind of see that as maybe a

possibility in their life.

304

And so I got on stage after this

incredible band was producing, was

305

performing all of these, you know, great

seventies hits.

306

And I had to follow that and it was like,

wow, this is like top notch production.

307

And then I get up there and it was the

performance,

308

of my life, brother.

309

I mean, I literally, literally, I just got

a phone call.

310

This never happens.

311

I just got a phone call from somebody who

was at the event and they said, is this

312

Chris Hensley?

313

And I was like, yeah.

314

And they're like, we were at the event on

Saturday night for Writers Theater and I

315

just had to call you and tell you, you

were incredible, right?

316

Now, this frequently happens in the

audience, right?

317

And you've seen this, right?

318

You know, you get off stage and people

just want to come up and say, thank you,

319

you did great.

320

You were the best auctioneer I've ever

seen, whatever.

321

I call it crowd bathing.

322

It's a, it's, I borrow that actually from

Simon LeBond.

323

He stands there on the stage at the, at

the front of the show and the audience is

324

just screaming at him.

325

Right.

326

And he's just doing this, just crowd

bathing.

327

Right.

328

And that's my version of crowd bathing is

going out to the audience and talking to

329

people.

330

Right.

331

I think about it this way.

332

I'm always on stage.

333

I'm auditioning for at least two other

jobs.

334

that event again next year, the event that

I'm doing right there next year.

335

And then all of the people in the

audience, you know, we're talking to

336

people who are, you know, we're raising

money from people who are on boards, who

337

lead organizations, all of that kind of

thing.

338

And so when they see you kicking ass for

this charity, they want you to come and

339

kick ass for their charity also, right?

340

You and I are both, we're just handing out

cards constantly.

341

We're

342

We're getting phone calls, we're getting

emails.

343

I saw you at this event, I saw you at that

event.

344

You were the best auctioneer I ever saw.

345

Like, could you come and do our event?

346

The biggest problem that I have is that I

can't get, I can't be in two places at one

347

time, right?

348

And that's where I come in.

349

That's where I come in.

350

And, and, and that's, as you said, you

know, from your mentor with the G man

351

telling you that there's more events than

auctioneers, right?

352

Like I'm, I'm proof of that.

353

And,

354

I've developed some great relationships

with some awesome organizations myself,

355

you know, second city canine rescue.

356

We just did a $266 ,000 for, and, you

know, I'm being flown all over the place

357

right now for, for Beto duty, you and you

know, that's just the kind of guy you are

358

because you know, likely I'm going to do a

great job and they'll be my clients urine

359

and you're out, but you know, you're going

to do a great job for your clients and you

360

can't be in two places at once.

361

So why wouldn't folks like you and I team

up and help each other and in turn help

362

great causes and.

363

You know, I want to just kind of change

the subject real quick because we have

364

some amazing, amazing folks chiming in and

some great business owners.

365

I want to ask you, there's some folks

asking questions as well, but I want to

366

ask you a question and talk a little bit

about in your experience, you know, doing

367

60 events a year now, the brand

recognition that businesses can create by

368

donating to auctions or answering events,

right?

369

I think it's such a missed opportunity for

local business owners.

370

or for entrepreneurs to donate their

services to local charities, not only do

371

they get the write -off, but they gain

exposure into a network for their services

372

that they've never had exposure to.

373

So talk a little bit about how that works

for businesses, because that's been one of

374

my passions of becoming an auctioneer as

well.

375

Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

376

I think there's this great opportunity for

us auctioneers and nonprofit organizations

377

to kind of create synergy.

378

In communities, right?

379

You know, you talk about Windy City, K9

Auctions, you know, or K9 Rescue.

380

You know, like when companies sponsor that

event and their guests are sitting there

381

seeing that, you know, this car dealership

or, you know, this, you know, spa, you

382

know, is this local business that's

supporting this local nonprofit.

383

They're like, these people are loyal to

Windy City.

384

And now they're going to be loyal to that

sponsor because the sponsor is supporting

385

this organization that they care so

passionately about, right?

386

You know, so you want to, as a business,

you want to connect your brand to

387

passionate people who are willing to, you

know, go to the ends of the earth to

388

support you.

389

And when you can support the things that

those customers are passionate about,

390

they're going to become passionate about

your product and your service and your

391

business.

392

So I think it's one of the most effective

ways to get your business out there.

393

And it's very low cost also.

394

Yeah.

395

And in many cases, if you donate a service

as an example, if you're a coach of some

396

sort and you're an entrepreneur or you're

a masseuse of some sort and you donate

397

your services, that's a write off for your

business.

398

You gain access to a new client.

399

And if you're an expert and you do a great

job in your industry, you're going to have

400

a client for life like you would as an

auctioneer.

401

I do now.

402

So, you know, that's part of the services

that I know I provide.

403

And.

404

Talk a little bit about some of the other

things that you provide with bid raise

405

bid, aside from just being a general

auctioneer.

406

Yeah, so event consulting, because I've

attended so many events, I've built a gala

407

myself, I've walked in the shoes of the

people who are planning their event.

408

And so I know exactly what they're going

through.

409

I always like to say also, when it comes

to the day of the event, I am there to

410

help you.

411

I'm not there to be a diva.

412

You're not there to care for me.

413

I don't need a green room.

414

I don't need a makeup artist.

415

You know, none of this kind of stuff,

right?

416

I do.

417

I do.

418

I do.

419

I mean, clearly I need a makeup artist,

but you know, I'm going to wear makeup.

420

Right.

421

So, yeah.

422

So, you know, I'm there to help maximize

your event so that you can raise as much

423

money as possible so that you can't

steward.

424

your donors as much as possible.

425

And that stewardship begins immediately

when they raise their paddle, right?

426

And so, you know, I'm in the audience

mixing it up.

427

I'm giving high fives.

428

I'm giving fist bumps.

429

I'm complimenting people on their shoes,

their hair, their dress, their makeup,

430

whatever, right?

431

To make them feel great for being there

tonight.

432

You know, because look, they could have

just as easily stayed home and watched

433

reruns of Malcolm in the middle, right?

434

But they chose to be here instead, right?

435

They're here helping this organization

raise money.

436

And so, you know, help them feel great

about it.

437

When you help them feel great, they're

gonna give more money, they're gonna raise

438

their paddles more, and they're gonna come

back next year.

439

They're gonna create this viral buzz about

your event that's gonna make more people

440

want to come to it.

441

And so, you know, are we the like, are we

the most important part of the event?

442

No, but are we a critical element of it

that helps people feel great?

443

Absolutely.

444

Yeah.

445

And speaking, you know, here's a here's

another great question that was asked and

446

you and I always laugh behind the scenes

about this as well.

447

You mentioned being a critical part of an

event, and I absolutely agree with you.

448

But how often and I've already experienced

this myself in many conversations, do you

449

hear from organizations, charities?

450

Well, you know, we had a volunteer auction

here or, you know, we're just going to

451

have somebody's dad do it.

452

And as you said, in your own organization,

right?

453

when you were running your Black Tide

Gala, I think as you said, the

454

amplification of the giving with a

professional like myself and yourself is

455

instrumental and the small cost that we do

input on an organization is well spent.

456

And so talk a little bit about that

experience and that philosophy as well.

457

Yeah, well, for starters, like that small

cost, one, I try to keep it as low as

458

possible, right?

459

I try to respect what my talent is.

460

and, yet while leaving the nonprofit with

the ability to put as much of those

461

dollars to work as possible.

462

And so you'll find that, you know, I, I'm,

I'm at the low end of the charity

463

auctioneer price range.

464

you know, and I do that not because I

don't think that I don't bring more value

465

than anybody else, right?

466

I've sat in the audience and watched the

most expensive auctioneer in Chicago do

467

his thing.

468

And I can guarantee you that I do as well,

if not better.

469

than that most expensive auctioneer,

taking nothing away from him, right?

470

He's a great auctioneer, but I don't think

there's a reason to charge triple what I

471

charge, right?

472

I think that these nonprofits, you know,

many cases smaller nonprofits, that when

473

they raise a quarter million dollars,

that's life changing for their mission,

474

right?

475

They're able to do different things that

they're not able to do without that money,

476

right?

477

And so, you know, so that's one piece of

it.

478

The other piece that I'll say is,

479

I think that what you and I bring to an

event, it more than pays for itself,

480

right?

481

I'm confident of that in fact.

482

So if I charge four or $5 ,000 for an

event, I'm going to bring you 20 ,000, 30

483

,000, 50 ,000 more than you would have.

484

I'll give an example.

485

I took an event over a couple of years ago

from a different auctioneer.

486

and that year before they raised 175 ,000

in the moment, right?

487

Just a paddle raise and live auction.

488

I took the event over roughly the exact

same architecture for the event and we did

489

a quarter million dollars.

490

So that's $75 ,000 difference.

491

Right.

492

And I was $3 ,000 cheaper than that other

auctioneer.

493

And again, taking nothing away from that

auctioneer.

494

There are a lot of great auctioneers out

there, right?

495

They're probably seven, eight, nine.

496

really good charity auctioneers in the

Chicago market, right?

497

And you're not gonna go wrong with any of

them, right?

498

But you're gonna get people like you and

me who believe passionately in the mission

499

of the organizations that we work for, who

don't overcharge and who bring these other

500

ideas and their energy and all of that,

that helps the organization raise more

501

money than they would have otherwise.

502

And certainly to your point, more money

than they would have raised with a

503

volunteer auctioneer.

504

So.

505

You know, if your goal is to raise $100

,000 and you want to use a volunteer

506

auctioneer, you might do $100 ,000.

507

But if you brought one of us in, you'd

probably do 140, right?

508

And you're going to pay us three or four

or 5 ,000 bucks, right?

509

But it's worth it because you've got, you

know, $40 ,000 more than what you would

510

have gotten with that volunteer

auctioneer.

511

It definitely makes a difference.

512

And here's why it makes a difference.

513

That volunteer does it one time, right?

514

You and I, I've done.

515

hundreds of auctions, right?

516

I've worked with hundreds of organizations

over the seven years that I've done this.

517

I've built auctions, I've built galas

myself, so I know exactly what you're

518

going through, when you're going through,

what you need to be thinking about, right?

519

And so I become that partner, that

advisor, that consultant also, that helps

520

you see around corners and make sure that

your event is gonna be even more

521

successful.

522

Yeah, no, you said it best, you know, in

that instance, I experienced it already,

523

you know,

524

having done a paddle raise a couple of

weeks ago and having had the opportunity

525

to have three people in the audience raise

their paddle for $7 ,500.

526

And at the end of the night, the

organization said, we never had anybody

527

above five, right?

528

And all of a sudden here we go and we

expedited the gifting that night.

529

And it's just such a fun opportunity.

530

And, you know, yeah, real quick, though,

hold on real quick because we're going to

531

wrap up in minutes.

532

We can keep going.

533

But there's two other big points I want to

get to.

534

But go ahead.

535

Yeah.

536

So, so I always when, when folks say like,

we want to start our paddle raise at $5

537

,000, I say, let me try at 10 ,000.

538

Right.

539

And let me own it also.

540

Right.

541

So, you know, I could say, Hey, well, when

we were talking about setting up this

542

event, Chris and I said, you know, Chris

told me we should start at $5 ,000.

543

But I said, let me try at 10 ,000.

544

Right.

545

And so is there anybody out there that

superhero that champion that can be that

546

first gift that could put that paddle in

the air that can lead us off strongly here

547

tonight, right?

548

And inevitably, probably 40 to 50 % of the

time, somebody raises their paddle at that

549

big number, right?

550

And that super charges the entire evening,

right?

551

Everybody then thinks about elevating

their game.

552

If you were gonna give 100, you get 250.

553

If you're gonna give 250, you get 500,

right?

554

And so on and so forth.

555

And so there's two events I wanna talk

about.

556

One was,

557

North Shore Country Day and and I'll talk

about the organizations that I support

558

because I I dare any auctioneer to go try

to get these events from me, right?

559

I do such a good job that I'm certain that

no other That's good.

560

Okay time out time out time out time out.

561

That's to my point.

562

That's to my point, right?

563

And so You know speaking of my

competitiveness, right?

564

Like you and I in essence are a

competitor, but we're not

565

We understand the industry and we have to

bring different things to the table.

566

And, you know, we don't want to go on too

much longer.

567

So I'll let you talk about one of those

events, but I also want to just get your,

568

your, your feedback on, you know, how the

industry is changing, right?

569

Here's what I'm doing with the appeal.

570

I don't know that any other auctioneer in

the Chicago land area is doing this.

571

I have a great production.

572

I have a great production team behind me

with brilliant beam and see who you met.

573

creating shorts for these organizations

that I want to amplify the giving to.

574

Nobody's doing that in the Chicagoland

area, right?

575

And so we have to find ways to be more

creative.

576

And I want to get your opinion on that.

577

In a lot of ways, you're helping me and

other auctioneers elevate our game as

578

well, right?

579

So thank you for doing what you're doing.

580

You're bringing this new energy into the

charity auction space in Chicago.

581

And eventually, I think we're going to do

that around the country, right?

582

Together.

583

That competitiveness, I love it.

584

I'm mostly competitive with myself, but I

also want to know what an event did before

585

I came along because I want to beat it.

586

I want to give an organization absolutely

no reason to need a new auctioneer, to go

587

find a different auctioneer.

588

The only reason they should move off of me

is if my date is already booked for next

589

year.

590

I am unbooking into May of 2025 already.

591

That's where we are.

592

Back on those events, two events I just

want to talk real quick about.

593

One was they said, start at 10 ,000 on the

paddle race.

594

And literally 30 minutes before I went on

stage, I convinced them to let me try at

595

20.

596

We had three, three gifts at $20 ,000.

597

That's $30 ,000 that they would not have

raised because those twenties would have

598

all been $10 ,000 if I'd started at, at

that level.

599

and the other level, the other event was,

I said, you know, I said, started at 10.

600

I said, let me try.

601

I just have a feeling on this one.

602

Let me try it.

603

25.

604

I had a guy stand up.

605

And he looked like money, looked like

Gordon Gekko, right?

606

You know, suit, silver hair, everything.

607

And he asked for my microphone and I've

learned never to give your microphone

608

away, right?

609

But I trusted the moment, because he was

sitting next to the board chair.

610

He took the microphone and he came up to

the stage and he said, I haven't talked to

611

my wife about this, but I know where her

heart is.

612

We're going to give $500 ,000 to this

organization, right?

613

$500 ,000.

614

It was absolute gold.

615

The audience stood up.

616

There were tears, everything.

617

He handed the microphone back to me.

618

I looked out to the audience and I said,

folks, there were 300 people.

619

I said, folks, don't think for a second

that that $500 ,000 gift lets you all off

620

the hook.

621

If anything, super charges what we are

here to do tonight.

622

And we ended up raising $850 ,000 that

night, right?

623

Yeah.

624

And I want to talk about real quick.

625

Yeah, I had an I had an opposite

experience, right?

626

So behind the scenes, you know, the

627

And I said, Listen, I'm not afraid to

fail.

628

I failed many times on a baseball field,

and I'll fail many times at an auction.

629

I said to the executive director, what's

the most donation the hot the largest

630

donation you've ever received in a panel

raise in your history as an executive

631

director?

632

They said 10 ,000.

633

And I said, Well, I'm going to set the

record for you tonight.

634

So we raised it, we go to the panel raise.

635

And I said, Who's going to give me $10

,001?

636

and damn, not a panel was raised, right?

637

And so I moved on and I ended up getting,

you know, what we got that night.

638

But it's okay to fail when you're on stage

as we are, because if we don't ask, we're

639

never gonna get to your point, right?

640

That's exactly the point.

641

That's exactly the point, Chris, yes.

642

You know the answer if you don't ask,

right?

643

Yeah, that's it.

644

And it looks a lot better for a guy like

you or I to get turned down than the

645

executive director or the volunteer dad.

646

who's gonna start sweating through his

shirt, like, you know, because he's

647

nervous and he's gonna fail.

648

So it's just been such an honor, you know,

and we have great people in the crowd, you

649

know, just checking in, Raquel Flores from

Houston and Patty McNabb from New York,

650

and we had Soaring Profits from Canada,

great friends that I'm excited for you to

651

meet, Chris, because they do great work in

their communities, and I know you and I

652

together, you know, while we are...

653

you know, working as hard as we can

individually in the Chicagoland area.

654

We have aspirations to do things together

nationally and, and we're going to, we're

655

going to achieve that, you know?

656

And so to meet these people is going to be

an honor for you.

657

And I just want you to, to take the floor

real quick, let people know where they

658

could find you, contact you to book

events.

659

I know you're, Hey, it's good for me.

660

You're booking in the May of 25.

661

I'll ride your coattails.

662

Right.

663

And, and it's going to work in both ways

eventually, you know, you're, you're going

664

to be, you're going to be super booked

also and you'll throw things my way too.

665

So.

666

yeah, and so my website, you know, there's

a, I just put a sizzle, a reel together

667

last year with a good buddy of mine, Ben

Boyd.

668

and, you could see that video on my

website.

669

It's bid raise bid .com.

670

you could find me on probably most active

on socials on LinkedIn, just Chris

671

Hensley.

672

and, I, I mean, I'll, I'll give up my

phone number as well.

673

It's 6 3 0 7 5 0 1 0 4 5.

674

text is always best.

675

But yeah, I mean, however you wanna

contact me and wherever your organization

676

or your event is, I know this is true for

both Chris's on this call here, that we

677

will go anywhere, we'll get licensed

anywhere so that we can do auctions and

678

help nonprofits raise a ton of money.

679

That's it, exactly right.

680

So, see, if you don't mind, I wanna bring

yourself back up.

681

I want the three of us for just a few

seconds to talk about our true passions in

682

music.

683

Because, you know, like we said earlier,

part of being an auctioneer, and I've

684

named my company Hail Hail Auctions after

the greatest band ever to be known, Man,

685

Pearl Jam, and my favorite song, and

Steeus loves music, and Chris, you do.

686

So Chris, why don't you start us off?

687

You follow a band like I do and talk a

little bit about your...

688

Yeah, yeah.

689

I mean, I've got a couple bands, you know,

I grew up in the eighties.

690

I'm 54 years old.

691

I was born in 70.

692

So, you know, 83, 84, 85, God, like Duran

Duran, Depeche Mode, Psychedelic Furs, The

693

Smiths.

694

You know, just some of the greatest music

I think ever created came out of that like

695

mid eighties time span.

696

I've got these this cast of friends, my

brother, John, my buddy, Michael, my

697

buddy, Bradley, Patrick, Chad.

698

We all played instruments, played in bands

together, grew up together.

699

And so music is like the fabric of my

life, man.

700

I mean, you hear a song and it puts you

back in that time, puts you back with

701

those people.

702

It just special, special thing that music

does to your soul.

703

So yeah, how about you, Cia?

704

I know Chris and Jim, old Jim all around.

705

I knew you guys were gonna hit it off.

706

I knew you were gonna hit it off, Cia.

707

yeah, no, totally.

708

Like we are similarly aged.

709

I'm not quite 50 yet, but I will be in

August and we are going to look funny.

710

You should mention it.

711

We're going to see echo on May 8th.

712

So echo in the bunny man.

713

So I do have a concert crew that we all go

and it is so much fun thinking about.

714

And I just, it's about experiences, right?

715

What you guys offer as auctioneers, it's

not just simply, I'm going to show for

716

more money.

717

It's people like to feel.

718

that excitement that they're actually

contributing to something, right?

719

And getting those endorphins pumped up and

getting that adrenaline going for them, it

720

is something that is someone who's

experienced and trained like you guys are

721

can get to it faster to make people feel

good and to remember the experience.

722

And I think all three of us collectively

with rock and roll background, it becomes

723

a show.

724

This whole fundraising event becomes an

opportunity to communicate.

725

And like any concert, we all like to

woohoo, right?

726

So you guys are rock stars.

727

I'm like, I'm loving it.

728

So that's my two cents of this

conversation.

729

Well, I love your girl jam this summer

also right here in Chicago at Wrigley

730

field.

731

well, dude, listen, speaking of, I want to

just give a quick, shout out.

732

So, you guys both know my work with the

walking tall movement and my passion for

733

mental health.

734

you know, I actually am going to Seattle

the last week of, of may.

735

to work with First Responders and shout

out to Untamed Coffee Company and Mr.

736

Brady Hubler and his wife Carrie and all

the work they do in that community.

737

But it just so happens I was able to

organize the trip when Pearl Jam is

738

playing two shows in Seattle.

739

So I'll be able to go to those and work as

well.

740

And then, you know, of course my love for

Pearl Jam runs deep.

741

65 shows in September is going to be a big

month.

742

I'm going to Wrigley and Fenway and Ohana

and...

743

I've been lucky, you know, in life to meet

some great people and have mutual friends

744

of some of the band members and been

backstage and, you know, just had

745

conversations with, you know, my rock

icons.

746

You know, I should show a photo.

747

Not too many people have a picture with

their hero in music, Eddie Vedder, and

748

their father, and their father's hero in

music, Pete Townsend.

749

So I know my dad's watching and I got a

picture literally of me, Eddie Vedder, my

750

dad, Pete Townsend, Billy Idol.

751

It's crazy, right?

752

And so music is ingrained in me.

753

It's a part of who I've become and Pearl

Jam and their fan base is a charitable fan

754

base.

755

And that's ingrained in me.

756

And that's why I started HailHailActions.

757

And Chris, I just want to say thank you

because if not for the support and the

758

guidance, encouragement you've given, man,

like I wouldn't be in this position given

759

the last few years I've had.

760

So I love you, man.

761

And see, I love you.

762

And you know why I said yes.

763

You asked.

764

You asked.

765

Yeah.

766

Yeah, I'd like to do that.

767

And that's what Greg Dellinger did for me.

768

So I'm just repaying the favor, paying it

forward.

769

Yeah.

770

And I'll and I'll be honored to pay it

forward to somebody else because I really

771

think this is a great industry for folks

like us who are outgoing and giving back

772

in nature and see you are one of those

folks too.

773

And I'm just honored to have you on my

team.

774

So with that being said, check us out.

775

Hail, hail auctions dot com.

776

You can follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn.

777

Tick tock.

778

I should give a huge shout out to Jen

Kaufman, another one of our team members

779

who does amazing work on our reels and

social media.

780

so please connect with her.

781

And then some of my great friends, you

know, Raquel Flores, who I mentioned in

782

her influencers connection corner, Towsie

brands and Janice Okren, Jody Lamb and,

783

structure your settlement.

784

Soaring pro the list goes on and on Mark

Reed in Japan.

785

We just have such great support worldwide,

Chris.

786

And I know you will now too.

787

So.

788

it's been a great conversation and, let's

get back to our Monday.

789

So see if you don't mind roll that outro.