Auctioned guitar to aid cancer research center

When Judy Mullen went to see two of her favorite musicians play at Shank Hall in Milwaukee, she left with quite a souvenir: a guitar autographed by musicians Dan Navarro and Eric Lowen.

Now, the Wauconda woman is parting with this prized possession, for a good cause.

The brand new black and white Hamer Slammer guitar not only has Lowen's and Navarro's signatures, it also features the autographs of five other well-known musicians: John Mellencamp, Sonny Landreth, David Ranson, Albert Lee and Todd Wolfe. Currently up for auction on www.Idonatetocharity.org/store/joeysangels/, proceeds will benefit the nonprofit Joey's Angels Chapter of the Leukemia Research Foundation. The money raised will fund research for leukemia, pay expenses for support groups and provide financial assistance for those living with leukemia.

Mullen founded Joey's Angels in 1996 in memory of her nephew, Joey Mix, who had leukemia. She believes the guitar is a one-of-a-kind collector's item.

"What makes this guitar special is the fact that Navarro and Lowen made the extra effort to sign it," said Mullen. "I had asked Dan Navarro to sign the guitar and to my surprise Dan also walked it over to Eric and angled it just right so that he could sign it."

In 2004 Lowen was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, which affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord responsible for voluntary movement. He has continued to perform and has written songs that promote ALS awareness.

"Thanks to Lowen's autograph he made the guitar even more special." said Mullen.

Mullen says she can relate to Lowen's and Navarro's fundraising efforts and benefit concerts for the ALS Association.

"Both their fundraising and my fundraising are similar in which we are both trying to fight two devastating diseases," said Mullen.

Some of the previous guitars Joey's Angels has auctioned off had autographs from musicians like John Hiatt and John Lodge. The charity also received two autographed pictures and Joey's Angels hats from B.B. King.

The guitar is up for auction until Aug. 11. The high bid last week was $600.

Mullen thinks it's worth much more.

"I just saw something special in this guitar because I saw a strong friendship between both Dan and Eric," said Mullen. "It's kind of like the special love I had with Joey and his family."