Pat Morris, Anysley Porchak, and Lincoln Hensley present check
Back at the beginning of December, we shared information about an auction being run on Facebook to sell Sonny Osborne’s Stelling Sonflower prototype banjo, as a benefit for the IBMA Trust Fund.
This gold plated and highly ornate banjo was Osborne’s main instrument when he had to fly, which he refused to do with his pre war Granada. He played it from 1979 to 1981, at which point Geoff Stelling made him another Sonflower with some minor modifications.
When all was said and done, the auction raised $23,500 and the banjo, belonging to noted west coast radio host and artist, Wayne Rice, was sold to a private collector in Virginia, Keith Alessi. The sale was organized and executed by Lincoln Hensley, a close friend of Sonny’s, who managed the auction on his Facebook page.
Lincoln says that Keith is also a player who plans to tour with the banjo, sharing its unique history from the stage.
A check for $23,500 was presented to Pat Morris, Executive Director of the International Bluegrass Music Association on December 14 at American Legion Post 82 in Nashville, during a Holiday Benefit concert to benefit both the IBMA Trust Fund and the IBMA Foundation.
Well done all!
