I'm sad that I will only know him through the archives. I joined the list about
a year ago. I only remember emails about Jim, not from him. I'm happy that he
lives on in both the archives and the hearts of the members of this list.

I also suspect based on what many have said this is unlikely to be a one and
done kind of sale. Not that Jim's widow wants to become a tool dealer, but she
could probably pick out 50 items or so a month for some time. She will probably
make much more money in the long run with that kind of trickle than if she tries
to unload the whole lot at once. I'm sure we could help post the sale and
perhaps she or a friend/relation can take a picture or two of each item. We know
the providence. It's unlikely the Old Millrat left anything in less than good
condition and the majority of it is excellent.

Alternatively she could figure out how much she needs to run the house and the
list could pool and she could send tools of her choice out to those who
contribute. You never know what you are going to get, but you know your money is
going to help the Old Millrat's family. Of course contributions would also need
to cover shipping.

Another option, with some one's help, Charley, a galoot who lives close, some
one else, she could group tools into types/subtypes and offer a box to the list
every month. Minimum cost for the box is her expenses plus the cost of shipping
the box to Charley. Every $X you contribute gets you a ticket in the drawing.
Charley does the drawing and ships the box to the winner. This reduces shipping
costs and time. It could be the Old Millrat's Raffle.

It would be fun to do some archive mining and put together a collection of Old
Millrat Wisdom, tips and tricks, wisdom, humor, and memorable quotes. Heck, with
e-publishing and boutique printing being what it is these days we could put it
together, do the layout, kickstart a print edition and see if we can get some
support from the larger woodworking publishing community to advertise it and
send the funds to Jim's widow. We could put together five random tools as
kickstarter rewards for large contributors. Don't just own the Millrat's wisdom,
own the tools he used as well.

These are off the top of my head as I watch my youngest's soccer game this fine
Saturday morning. Personally I think the raffle has the highest return to effort
ratio for Jim's widow. I think The Old Millrat's Wit and Wisdom would be fun for
the list, with or without the kickstarter. I think it could have a great return
if we do a good job at it.

Jeff