How many free baseball caps, buttons or thermal cups do you really need? Trade show freebies are nice, but one company came up with a different approach to attract show attendees to their booth.
This week at the Fire Department Instructors Conference, Pierce Mfg. provided art and music that became a gift to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. The company sponsored Michael Israel, an internationally famous artist and entertainer, to create original paintings during the show. The paintings later were presented to NFFF Executive Director Ron Siarnicki for a fund-raising auction later that evening.
“Today in a small way we want to thank you and want to give back to you,” said Pierce President Wilson Jones. “Please accept this next 20 minutes as Pierce’s gift to you. We hope it will speak to the sincerely from all the people at Pierce.”
With that introduction, artist Israel stepped onto the stage in front of an oversized black canvas and greeted close to 1,000 attendees crammed in and around the booth. Israel commented that he believes art not only educates and entertains, but it assists victims across the nation. Israel’s paintings have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for charities.
“Art should express something,” Israel said. “It should express passion and it should mean something.” With those words, the song “Burning Down the House” blasted from the speakers. Israel jumped up and dabbed red paint in the middle of the canvas and threw the brushes down. Next he hit the canvas with two brushes dripping white. Israel spun the canvas with splashes and splotches — it wasn’t till the last broad strokes that the cab of a red fire truck appeared.
In front of a second blank canvas, Israel recalled his memories of Sept. 11, 2001, and thanked firefighters for their inspiration. Lee Greenwood’s song “Hero” began and the audience cheered as paint again hit the canvas. The second painting was of an American flag and a firefighter holding a child.
In the first four hours that FDIC was open on Thursday afternoon, bagpipers played through the aisles and firefighters filled every nook and cranny of the convention center. Just when you think they couldn’t possible squeeze more exhibits in this conference — inside or out — they do. Rain didn’t stop people from crawling around the trucks outside, but lightning did slow a few people down.
As I left the exhibit hall after the first day, I saw a mini-ambulance on a Polaris chassis. The patient-carrying vehicle is designed to fit into smaller areas such as arenas and parking garages and for off-road access. Several were in use during the Super Bowl earlier this year. As the need for apparatus grows, bigger isn’t always better.
One first-time attendee told me that FDIC reminded him of Las Vegas with all the flashing lights and noise. He might be right in that the cost of a food and beverages is right up with Vegas prices too, but the show goes on.
