The Bucks Stop Here

Family Auction preparations...

My doctor asked if any members of my family suffered from insanity. I replied, "No. We all seem to enjoy it."

Sound familiar??  As I think about the upcoming reunion in JUNE, I get excited to see and talk to everyone!!  Reunions give families the opportunity to spend time together visiting loved ones, getting to know one another, and building relationships that will last a lifetime.

I also get excited to see what will be at the family auction!  It's always a surprise to see what people bring to auction off. I know very little about live auctions, but I do know that our family auction is easy, fun, and successful. So we must be doing something right, right?

Here are some live auction tips from a participant’s perspective:


  and 
and    have been popular in the past.  Get your kids/grandkids involved in creating/making things for the auction. It becomes more of a "family" affair rather than a "great undertaking" for mom and dad.:)

Have items with sentimental or unique value.
All the items in our auction are donated by family. We had around 100 items in our auction last time. The items that auction at higher price tags always have high sentimental value. For example, family heirlooms, hand-crafted items by family members, framed photos and letters by family members, etc.
Take some time to brainstorm the type of auction items that will be most valuable, and make a list of items that could be easily created or donated.

It’s not about the item, it’s about the cause.
Perhaps the main key to our auction’s success is that, though we care little about some of the items in the auction, we care deeply about the time together and all the wonderful memories we create each year at our reunion.

We need to raise enough money for the next reunion to happen. The funds raised by this auction will affect where & how the next reunion will happen.  I hope these tips help us meet our fundraising goal for our next auction. But, please keep in mind, I am not an auction expert AT ALL!

Happy preparations!

Misty Pope (Debra's daughter-in-law)