NEWS RELEASE
Oakland Museum of California
www.museumca.org

10TH & OAK STREETS
OAKLAND, CA  94607

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 21, 2006

Oakland Museum of California 2006 White Elephant Sale Sets Record!
46th annual rummage sale raises $1.2 million

The massive 2006 White Elephant Sale, sponsored by the Oakland Museum Women's Board, has lumbered into record territory again! For the past five years, the sale has cleared the one million dollar mark: this year the sale raised $1,236,789.86 in gross sales, an increase of $29,000 over the 2005 Sale.

This year’s sales total was a closely guarded secret until today, when 2006 sale co-chairs Oona Johnson of San Leandro and Linda Kilpatrick of Oakland made the announcement before an audience of gleeful staff, trustees, volunteers, and Women's Board members. They greeted the news with wild applause.

The highest grossing departments were furniture ($169,400), jewelry ($125,700), and books/ music/ photography ($110,250). Found change in clothing and accessories? $75!

The legendary White Elephant Sale (“acres of bargains for peanuts”) is held on the first weekend in March at the Women's Board's warehouse, 333 Lancaster St., on the Oakland Estuary. Proceeds from the sale support the Oakland Museum of California's educational programs, exhibitions, acquisitions, and preservation of collections. Over the years the Women's Board has contributed more than $11 million to the museum.

The sale co-chairs were thrilled with the results of the sale and attributed them to extraordinary community donations and huge turnouts for the January Preview Sale and the regular Sale weekend.

Women's Board volunteers (including many husbands) and hundreds of community volunteers spend the entire year collecting, cleaning, sorting, and pricing donated new and used merchandise for the sale. Now that they have celebrated this year's record-breaking success, they’re ready to get to work on the 2007 sale, the weekend of March 3 & 4.

So start sending those donations—the White Elephant Sale truck will be on the move soon! For pickup of large items, call 510/839-5919. For information about drop-off dates, call 510/536-6800 after May 15 or visit http://www.museumca.org/events/elephant.html.

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