Banding Together for a Better World

We Have Received New and Exciting Information about our Project

2010-06-16T19:28:00.001-07:00

Great News!
We have learned from our Kenyan contact that the $2200.00 our class donated to Burning Bush Kenya is currently being used to help educate about 50 students! Wow! Our money has been placed in a revolving account and is loaned out to families to cover tuition for one term of school. The loan is repaid within two months and then can be re-loaned for the following term. Don't forget that this project was begun with a mere 64 cents. Only God can take 64 cents and educate 50 students in a country with one of the lowest literacy rates on Earth!
Our prayers were answered!

$2250.30 Raised and Donated in our Banding Together Project!

2010-03-07T18:07:00.000-08:00

This is our final entry in the Banding Together Blogspot.
Our project was a success!

We raised $2250.30 to aid micro-lending in Kenya! That's a

351,509.375% increase!

If you have followed our blog, you know that we began with an idea to see if 64 cents could make a difference in someone's life. So, we purchased rubberbands, made a rubberband ball and offered it for trade-up on our blog. We continued trading for bigger and better items until now. Here is the ending to our story. We have just donated the entire amount earned from our trades - $2250.30 - to help the people of Kenya. You can see the entire project by reading through the older posts of this blog.

Mrs. Cochrane, our teacher, is surrounded by Mr. and Mrs. Jerry Cover, the owners of the beautiful guitar at the last trade!

YIPPEE! Our Banding Together project is completed and successful. The guitar and ukulele were both sold and all the funds were donated to Burning Bush Inc. to provide micro-loans in Kenya. Mr. and Mrs. Cover purchased the one of a kind guitar that was hand painted by Mark Camden. As the Covers said, "Have you ever imagined that a rubber band could lead to feeding a family, providing employment, or giving hope to a village?" Well, that's exactly what happened in this case.

Dr. Jim Thomas, returned for the final trade. Dr. Thomas made the first trade and is the owner of our famous rubberband ball.

Colin Keith, the student who had the idea of trading-up, presents the money to Mrs. Poppy Buchanan and her daughter, Mary Barr. These women represent Burning Bush Inc. and have made many trips to Kenya as registered nurses. To read more about this work, or possibly help, check out: http://www.burningbushkenya.org/.

Many thanks to those of you who have followed this blog and prayed for our effort. Our prayers follow this money as it goes to Kenya and changes lives. In closing, we remember why we did this. Philippians2:4, "Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."

Go With God!

Mrs. Cochrane's Seventh grade class

YIPPEE!!!! Our Guitar and Ukulele Sold!

2010-02-16T19:01:00.000-08:00

We are so excited to tell you that both our items have sold for full value. We will be able to donate $2200.00 to aid micro-lending in Kenya through Burning Bush, Inc. Stay tuned for all the terrific details soon. We can't wait to share them with you.

Help Us Make the World A Better Place by Trading Up!

2009-10-13T17:44:00.000-07:00

We are ready and anxious to trade up with you and raise money to help rid our world of poverty! Mrs. Cochrane's seventh grade class at David Lipscomb in Nashville has studied the standard of living in poverty-stricken countries around the world and we are ready to tackle the problem. Last year, the seventh graders started this project with a mere sixty-four cents and purchased rubber bands to make a rubber band ball. The goal was to trade over and over for something of greater value. In the end, we will sell or auction our final item and donate all the money to aid micro-lending around the world.
Right now we own two very special musical instruments. We have a hand-painted guitar with an appraisal of $2000.00 and an antique ukulele valued at $200.00. And, remember that this all started with a rubber-band ball.
We are ready to trade-up with you!

If you are a collector of beautiful pieces, or if you just happen to be a compassionate person wanting to join us in making the world a better place, WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
Email our teacher, Mrs. Cochrane at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu with any trade offer.
Check out our archives on this blog to see all the fascinating trade-ups last year. We even were featured on T.V. and in the newspaper for our project and won a National Izzit Award!
Please know that 100% of our proceeds will be donated to rid our world of poverty. We want to hear of any offer! We are ready to trade to make the World a better place for all!

We are out for the summer!!!!

2009-06-11T11:37:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Cochrane's class is now officially on SUMMER VACATION! However, we would still love to either trade-up our guitars, or even sell them. If you have any offer for us, please contact our teacher at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu. Remember that we are anxious to aid micro-lending in Kenya. All the proceeds (100%) will be donated to raise the standard of living for those less fortunate. Happy Trades and Happy Summer!
Mrs. Cochrane's Seventh Grade Class

Now We Have TWO Guitars to Trade!!

2009-03-11T08:34:00.001-07:00

Bria, Kaleigh, Elly, and Mrs. Cochrane took our one-of-a-kind guitar to the 4 Amigos guitar show in Franklin, TN this weekend. Although we did not get a "trade up", we did meet lots of great guitar fans willing to help our cause. Mr. Jimmy Clanton, a high school teacher from Birmingham, AL donated a vintage ukulele to help raise money for micro loans. The ukulele has a value of approximately $200 - $250. ( Mr. Clanton also owns "Vintage Instruments, Single-Action Guns and Antiques" and can be reached at jimmylclanton@yahoo.com) Two other wonderful, anonymous guitar fans donated money to be added to our final amount. What a great group of musicians these were!
So, now we have our original Mark Camden, hand-painted guitar (with a legal, written appraisal of $2000) along with a vintage ukulele and we want to trade with YOU!
We will consider any item/service valued at more than the $2250 that we currently possess. Remember that we began this project with only a rubber band ball and now are up to $2250 in value. Also, remember that by trading up with us, you will help cure poverty around the world. All proceeds from the sale of our final item at the end of April will be donated to aid poverty stricken countries around the world. Do you have something in the attic or garage that you don't use anymore? If it is worth more than what we have, make us an offer. Contact our teacher, Mrs, Cochrane with all offers at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu We can't wait to hear from you.
Happy Trades.
Mrs. Cochrane's Seventh Graders

p.s. A special thanks to "Classic Ax" who helped us by putting new strings on the guitar and donating a guitar case. If you are in the Nashville area and need a great guitar repairman, check out Classic Ax and ask for Greg. http://www.classicax.com/
Also, thanks to Mr. Dave Crocker of 4 Amigos guitar show for allowing us to come.

We have a NEW TRADE! Take a look!

2009-02-13T13:57:00.000-08:00

Take a look at our new trade!

Our class traded the Persian rug that was donated by singing legend RICK DERRINGER with Mrs. Ginger Turner for a hand-made and hand-painted collector's guitar. We have the legal appraisal for the guitar priced at $2000.00! The appraiser's description of the guitar is, "This guitar is a D-size Acoustic Guitar (unknown maker), featuring Exotic Laminated European Rosewood back and sides with a spruce top and maple neck. It was hand painted by Mark Camden, a well-known artist in the Smokey Mountain area. The painting is done in a Southwestern Indian Art Style. The value of this guitar would be placed at $2000."

Rick Derringer was still in Nashville and kind enough to come to our school and participate in this trade, also. It was fun having a celebrity at our school. We were even on WSMV channel 4 news that night. HOW FUN!!!

Matthew and Seth hold up the Persian rug as rock and roll singing legend Rick Derringer tells the t.v. camera why he chose to get involved in our Banding Together project. (Mr. Derringer is very famous for his songs "Hang on Sloopy" and "Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo". Today, you will find his songs on Guitar Hero 2.)

Collin Keith, the 7th grader who told us of the trading-up concept, gets his picture made with both of our traders, Rick Derringer and Mrs. Ginger Turner. Isn't this guitar INCREDIBLE! And, it has been held by RICK DERRINGER!

Now, our job is to find someone who wants to trade-up for this guitar. Remember, we started with a rubberband ball and we have traded- up to this guitar. We plan to continue trading up until the end of April at which time we will sell or auction our final item and donate all the money to aid micro-lending in poverty-stricken countries around the world. If you can help us with this project, please contact our teacher, Mrs. Cochrane, at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu

Happy Trades!

Mrs. Cochrane's seventh grade class at David Lipscomb Middle in Nashville, TN

We traded for a COLLECTOR'S HAND-MADE GUITAR!

2009-02-12T15:42:00.001-08:00

Wow! What a week we have had. We traded with legendary rocker Rick Derringer for a Persian rug and quickly traded again for a special hand-made and hand-painted guitar that came with a legal appraisal of $2000.00. Unfortunately, you will have to wait another day to see all the photos of the exciting trade. We didn't have time to update today because, you see, our teacher insisted on us preparing for our test today. Tomorrow, we will get all the information and photos of our most exciting trade yet! And, guess what? WE WERE ON TV! Check back tomorrow for all the details.
Happy Trades!
Mrs. Cochrane's class

GUESS WHAT WE HAVE NOW! A PERSIAN RUG!

2009-02-08T13:17:00.000-08:00

Our Newest Trade

We have traded the Music City Getaway for a beautiful Persian Rug. But, a big part of the excitement with this trade is WHO we traded with. We traded with singing legend,

Rick Derringer!

Rick Derringer sang the famous, "Hang on Sloopy" and "Rock and Roll Hoochie Koo" songs. Today, "Hang on Sloopy" is well known by Ohio State football fans (it is played at every home game) as well as Guitar Hero fans. After learning about our project to aid micro-lending in poverty stricken countries, Rick and his wife, Jenda, contacted us with this generous offer.

Rick Derringer trades his Persian rug for our Music City Getaway with

7th graders Jackson, Grant, and Spencer.

This is one of our most exciting trades yet! This time, our teacher, Mrs. Cochrane, insisted on being in the picture. She was so excited to have her picture made with Mr. Rick Derringer. Looks like Spencer wanted in on the excitement, too.

To learn more about Mr. Rick Derringer and his fantastic career, check out his web page at

http://www.rickderringer.com/ .

Or, check out some of his many videos on You Tube.

If you would like to make an offer to trade up with us, just email our teacher,

Mrs. Rita Cochrane, at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu . Remember that whatever we have at the end of April will be auctioned off and all the money donated to aid micro-lending in poverty stricken countries around the world.

Happy Trades,

The Seventh Grade Class at David Lipscomb

WE HAVE TRADED OUR MUSIC CITY GETAWAY!

2009-01-22T12:26:00.000-08:00

We are very excited to say that we have accepted an out-of-state trade offer for our two nights at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and the two Grand Ole Opry tickets! The trade is to take place on Sunday, February 1. We are keeping the exact offer a secret for the moment, but you will want to check back on February 2 for all the exciting details. I know you will want to trade for this next one! We are definately on our way to improving the lives of many people around the world. YIPPEE!

Happy Trades!
Mrs. Cochrane's 7th grade class

p.s. To see the details of our project, how it started, and how you can help aid micro-lending in poverty-stricken countries around the world, click on the rubberband ball icon at the top of this page.

We chose to keep our Music City Getaway!

2009-01-09T12:27:00.001-08:00

After voting on our trade offer today, the seventh grade students have chosen to hold onto our $600 getaway. This is great news for those of you out there trying to decide on a trade. You have until next Thursday, the 15th to contact us with trade offers. Here is what we have:

A Two Night Stay at the World Famous Gaylord Opryland Hotel
and
Two Grand Ole Opry Tickets!

The great thing is that you may choose the date you wish to come to Nashville for this getaway as long as there is the availablity.

This would make a terrific
Valentine, Anniversary, or Birthday surprise!

So, look for an item to trade up with us. Remember that whatever we have in April, we will auction off and all proceeds will go to aid undeveloped countries around the world through micro-lending.

For all trade offers, contact our teacher, Mrs. Cochrane, at
rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu

Happy Trades,
the Seventh Graders at David Lipscomb Middle School

Music City U.S.A. weekend for trade!

2008-12-16T12:07:00.000-08:00

Hailey, Ali, Thomas, and Brady give a "thumbs-up" over our new trade.

Guess what we have to trade with you? We have a two night's stay at the World Famous Opryland Hotel in Nashville, Tennessee, and two Grand Ole Opry tickets! This adventure is worth $600! What a great get-away! This would make a terrific Valentine surprise for your loved one , a special anniversary or birthday gift, or just a treat for yourself. And, you may choose when you wish to have this adventure.

Mrs. Cochrane's students are thrilled to have the Music City weekend for trade!

Now, we can't wait to hear from you. This would be especially terriific for all of you friends outside our great state of Tennessee that we know have followed our blog. Or, just think how awesome this would be for all of you friends who have followed this blog from outside the U.S. Remember that this is not for sale.

We want to trade-up!

We started with a 64 cent rubberband ball and believe it or not, now we are looking to trade-up for a $600 Music City get-away. So, look around for something to trade. We will consider all offers. We will consider artwork, jewelry, services, antiques, you name it. Be creative ! It doesn't have to be anything new - just a trade up. Remember, that whatever we own in April, we will auction off and donate the money toward micro-lending in developing countries. Please contact our teacher, Rita Cochrane, at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu with your trade offer.

We can't wait to hear from all of you!

Happy Trades!

Mrs. Cochrane's Class

We've traded!

2008-12-15T18:48:00.000-08:00

Thanks for being patient, all of you out there who have been checking our blogspot. We had a snow day on Friday (Yippee!) which meant we could not vote on our trade. We voted today and plan to make a trade tomorrow. So, check back tomorrow afternoon because we are very excited about what we will have to offer.

Yippee!! We have Grand Ole Opry Backstage Passes to Trade!

2008-12-08T16:10:00.000-08:00

Mollie, a WSM representative, trades Grand Ole Opry passes
for our $300 Ms Concierge gift card.

The seventh grade class at David Lipscomb in Nashville, Tennessee has traded-up with 650 AM WSM radio and are the proud owners of two backstage passes to a performance of the Grand Ole Opry. If you love country music, then you will want to trade with us for this! These backstage passes could be yours!

With this trade, you will:
*Be allowed to choose the performance you wish to attend
*Be escorted through the backstage artists' entrance
*Tour the "off-limits" areas of the opry
*Mix and mingle with the Opry crew and cast
*Be given a "shout-out" from the stage of the Opry which will be broadcast over WSM airways
*Actually sit on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry during the entire performance
*Receive a WSM prize pack

WOW! This offer is never for sale. The only way you can have this is to trade-up for it.

For those of you who thought you would never get this opportunity, this is your lucky day! So, how can you own this incredible night? Remember that we want to "trade-up", meaning that we want to get something worth more than the value of this awesome opportunity. We started out with a 64 cent rubberband ball and now own these two Opry backstage passes. Our class will continue trading up until April at which time we plan to auction off our final trade and donate the money to micro-lending in undeveloped countries.

We can't wait to hear from you. If you would like to trade with us and become the owner of the Opry experience of a lifetime, please email our teacher, Mrs. Cochrane at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu . We will evaluate all offers every Friday, so get those offers in by Thursday night.

Lauren and T.J. show off our Grand Ole Opry backstage pass and Mollie takes the MS Concierge gift card for WSM to donate to the March of Dimes auction.

Happy Trades,

Mrs. Cochrane's seventh grade class

We traded for something money can't buy - Priceless!

2008-12-05T12:56:00.000-08:00

We are excited to announce that Lipscomb's seventh graders have accepted the trade of two back-stage passes to the Grand Ole Opry performance of your choice. The two passes include backstage entrance to the Opry by the artists' door, the chance to mingle backstage, sit on the stage during the opry performance, and much, much more. We will be making our official trade on Monday with the WSM radio representative. On Monday night, be sure to check back for photos and all the details. Remember, this is a trade that is never for sale. The only way you can get this is to offer us something in trade. We are looking to trade-up.

Happy Trades!

the 7th grade class at David Lipscomb in Nashville, Tennessee

New offers of trade are coming in

2008-12-01T18:22:00.000-08:00

Be ready on Friday for us to announce our new item for trade. We have offers coming in that we will be voting on this Friday and making our announcement. If you do not wish to trade for the gift certificate, be sure you check back with us Friday evening to see what we trade for. It may be just what you want!
Happy Trades!

We chose to keep the gift certificate and hold out for a better offer.

2008-11-21T12:31:00.000-08:00

Today, our class voted to hold onto our gift card and did not accept any trade this week. So, to all of you who thought it was too late to get that $300 gift certificate for residential house cleaning, compliments of Ms Concierge, you are in luck. This would make a perfect Christmas present! So, find something worth more than $300 and make an offer. How about pieces of art, jewelry, antique sports memoribilia, antique furniture or glassware, types of services, etc. The sky is the limit! Remember that all proceeds from our final trade auction will be donated to aid mico-lending in undeveloped countries.
Can't wait to hear from you.

Happy Trades!

Mrs. Cochrane's Seventh Grade Class

Who wants to trade-up for ten hours of Professional House Cleaning?

2008-11-17T15:20:00.000-08:00

Mrs. Kopp, from Ms Concierge, trades a $300 gift certificate for the iPod.

Today, Mrs. Cochrane's class accepted Mrs. Stacey Kopp's trade-up. In exchange for the brand new iPod Nano, we received a gift certificate in the amount of $300 for residential cleaning in any home in Middle Tennessee. Whoever trades-up for this service will receive ten hours of house cleaning from Ms Concierge cleaning company. What a great gift for a loved one! How exciting to have your house professionally cleaned for holiday entertaining? Or, better yet, have it cleaned AFTER the holiday entertaining and you can just relax!

Here is the prized possession for trade-up! $300 gift card from Ms Concierge!

Get your offers in as soon as possible. Please remember that we want to trade for something worth more than $300. We will evaluate all offers each Friday. If we choose to trade that week, we will contact the winner and make the trade-up. Our final offer in April will be auctioned off and the proceeds donated to micro-lending in undeveloped countries.

No, we promise, this is not the professional cleaning crew. It's just some 7th graders excited about the trade.

Happy Trades!

Mrs. Cochrane's 7th graders

We Have Traded our iPod!

2008-11-15T08:52:00.001-08:00

On Friday, our class voted to accept the offer to trade our iPod nano for a $300 gift certificate for maid cleaning services. Wow! Right before holiday entertaining is the perfect time to have your home professionally cleaned. Check back on Monday for all the details and pictures of this trade. Be looking for what you can offer as a trade-up for this great gift. Happy Trades!
Mrs. Cochrane's 7th Grade Class

Who wants to trade up for this brand new I-pod?

2008-11-10T12:41:00.000-08:00

Here is our new trade! Dr. Jim Thomas, our vice-president at Lipscomb University, traded us a brand new iPod nano for our legendary rubber band ball so he can display it in the president's quarters at our university. This is the brand spankin' new red iPod nano-chromatic. It is eight GB and includes earphones and a USB 2.0 cable. It is great for long rides in the car and on the airplane. It is ultra-skinny for on the go and holds tons of great songs. It has awesome games, and has much better sound that any other iPod nano. It sells at the Apple Store for $149.00. This would make a fantastic Christmas/ birthday present!

Here is Dr. Thomas trading an iPod for our rubberband ball.

We will evaluate all trade offers this Friday the 14th. Please email our teacher with all trading- up offers at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu . Remember, in April we will auction off our final offer and donate all the money to micro-lending in undeveloped countries. Can't wait to hear from you!

Mrs. Cochrane's 7th grade World Geography class.

Rubber Band Ball Has Been Traded

2008-11-07T12:48:00.000-08:00

We have traded our rubber-band ball for an I-pod! We hope to have the I-pod listed for trade by the 1st of next week. Be sure to check back for all the info on the I-pod. Please start searching for what you would like to trade up for it! YIPPEE!

Rubberband Ball Trade-Up

2008-11-03T14:54:00.000-08:00

Who wants to trade for this rubberband ball?

The 7th grade World Geography class at David Lipscomb Middle School in Nashville, Tennessee wants to "trade-up" for our rubberband ball. You see, we have been studying about standard of living and per capita incomes of countries around the world. We found out in a video by Izzit Co. entitled, "Pennies a Day," that Dr. Muhammad Yunus has made a difference in the standard of living in Bangladesh with just sixty-four cents. One of our seventh graders, Collin Keith, told Mrs. Cochrane, our teacher, about the concept of "trading-up," and we decided to give it a try. We spent the same amount (64 cents that our Vice-President, Dr. Jim Thomas donated) and purchased rubberbands from our middle school secretary.

At right, Dr. Thomas pays Collin the sixty-four cent investment for the rubberbands.

Below, we then paid Ms. Grissim, our middle school secretary, sixty-four
cents for the rubberbands.

Every 7th grade student, teacher, and administrator at David Lipscomb added a rubberband to our ball. Our principal, Mr. Pickens, added the yellow band to the ball.

Here is Mr. Pickens adding the yellow band .

Lastly, our President, Dr. Lowry, added the final purple band. (Purple and gold are our school colors.)

Dr. Lowry adds the final purple band as Collin Keith assists.

Now, our mission is to see if we can make a difference with our 64 cent investment. We plan to "trade-up" this rubberband ball numerous times between now and April, 2009, at which time we will auction off whatever item we possess. The money we raise will be donated to making a difference in undeveloped countries through micro-lending.

So, what does this have to do with you? Well, look and see what you have that is worth more than our rubberband ball, but is something that you would like to trade with us. The seventh grade students will consider each offer received and take a democratic vote to determine which offer we accept. If your offer is not accepted, keep checking our blog, because you just might want to trade for the next item we post.

How do you go about trading with us?
We look forward to hearing from anyone out there who is interested in "trading-up" for our rubberband ball. If you have an item to submit to us, please email our teacher, Mrs. Rita Cochrane, at rita.cochrane@lipscomb.edu with your trade information.

Our class will evaluate all trade offers every Friday. So, be sure you submit your trade by Thursday nights. We will then notify the winner and make our trade. As soon as possible, we will resubmit our new item for trade. Be watching! You never know what it will be! It might be just what you want!

Let the game begin! Happy Trades to You!

From: the 7th grade students at David Lipscomb Middle School