The community came together to raise money for two children whose parents died in a motorcycle crash.
A grieving family has been left astounded by several wonderful acts of kindness at a car auction in Alberta, Canada.
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The family were left devastated earlier in 2018 when Brent and Nicole Keryluke died in a motorcycle crash. Their two children are now being cared for by their grandparents with the help of family.
To raise money for the children, both of whom have hearing impairments, the difficult decision was made to sell the 1973 Pontiac Parisienne their son had enjoyed working on.
But what actually happened when the auction got started astounded them and everybody else at Electric Garage Auctions, with the car being repeatedly sold and donated back to the family.
The car was initially bought for $29,000 before being donated back, where it was sold for $30,000 before being donated back again. It was then sold for $20,000 one final time before being given back to the family.
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During the auction, others made individual donations to the family also, with around $100,000 reportedly raised in total, while the family got to keep the car, which has huge sentimental value.
“None of us knew how powerful the actual moment would be,” said Rod Burnett, the auctioneer, who also owns Global College of Engineering Ltd. “It was an amazing moment in everyone’s lives that was there.
“My faith in people grew somewhat that afternoon. It’s so moving because most of us have young families and I couldn’t imagine my kids being alone without me.
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“The family couldn’t believe it. They are most appreciative and I think are still in awe from the public support of their family. I would say the message is, out of a massive tragedy such as this a positive is still able to be found.”
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A GoFundMe page has been set up to raise money for the family, and can be visited by clicking here.
VIENNA (AP) — A portrait of a young woman by Gustav Klimt that was long believed to be lost was sold at an auction in Vienna on Wednesday for 30 million euros ($32 million).
The Austrian modernist artist started work on the “Portrait of Fräulein Lieser” in 1917, the year before he died, and it is one of his last works. Bidding started at 28 million euros, and the sale price was at the lower end of an expected range of 30-50 million euros.
The painting went to a bidder from Hong Kong, who wasn't identified.
The Im Kinsky auction house said that “a painting of such rarity, artistic significance, and value has not been available on the art market in Central Europe for decades.”
The intensely colored painting was auctioned on behalf of the current owners, Austrian private citizens whose names weren't released, and the legal heirs of Adolf and Henriette Lieser, one of whom is believed to have commissioned the painting. It's not entirely clear which member of the Lieser family was the model.
Klimt left the painting, with small parts unfinished, in his studio when he died of a stroke in early 1918 and it was given to the family who had commissioned it, according to the auction house.
The Jewish family fled Austria after 1930 and lost most of their possessions.
It's unclear exactly what happened to the painting between 1925 and the 1960s, a period that includes the Nazi dictatorship. Austria was annexed by Nazi Germany in 1938.
The auction house says there is no evidence that the painting was confiscated then, but also no proof that it wasn't. It ended up with the current owners through three successive inheritances.
In view of the uncertainty, an agreement was drawn up with the current owners and the Liesers' heirs to go forward with the sale under the Washington Principles, which were drafted in 1998 to assist in resolving issues related to returning Nazi-confiscated art.
The auction house said it was very happy with Wednesday's result.
The sale price was an art auction record for Austria. The highest price previously paid at an auction in the country was just over 7 million euros for a work by Frans Francken the Younger in 2010.
A man looks at the painting 'Portrait of Fräulein Lieser' by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt prior to an auction, in Vienna, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. A portrait of a young woman by Gustav Klimt that was long believed to be lost has been sold at an auction in Vienna for 30 million euros ($32 million). The Austrian modernist artist started work on the “Portrait of Fräulein Lieser” in 1917, the year before he died, and it is one of his last works. (AP Photo/Christian Bruna)
A man looks at the painting 'Portrait of Fräulein Lieser' by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt prior to an auction, in Vienna, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. A portrait of a young woman by Gustav Klimt that was long believed to be lost has been sold at an auction in Vienna for 30 million euros ($32 million). The Austrian modernist artist started work on the “Portrait of Fräulein Lieser” in 1917, the year before he died, and it is one of his last works. (AP Photo/Christian Bruna)
Attendees take photographs of the painting 'Portrait of Fräulein Lieser' by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt during an auction, in Vienna, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. A portrait of a young woman by Gustav Klimt that was long believed to be lost has been sold at an auction in Vienna for 30 million euros ($32 million). The Austrian modernist artist started work on the “Portrait of Fräulein Lieser” in 1917, the year before he died, and it is one of his last works. (AP Photo/Christian Bruna)
Auctioneer Michael Kovacek declares the sale of the painting 'Portrait of Fräulein Lieser' by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt during an auction, in Vienna, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. A portrait of a young woman by Gustav Klimt that was long believed to be lost has been sold at an auction in Vienna for 30 million euros ($32 million). The Austrian modernist artist started work on the “Portrait of Fräulein Lieser” in 1917, the year before he died, and it is one of his last works. (AP Photo/Christian Bruna)
A man looks at the painting 'Portrait of Fräulein Lieser' by Austrian painter Gustav Klimt prior to an auction, in Vienna, Wednesday, April 24, 2024. A portrait of a young woman by Gustav Klimt that was long believed to be lost has been sold at an auction in Vienna for 30 million euros ($32 million). The Austrian modernist artist started work on the “Portrait of Fräulein Lieser” in 1917, the year before he died, and it is one of his last works. (AP Photo/Christian Bruna)
