11th Annual Auction a Success

The Eleventh Annual Habitat for Humanity Juried Art Auction, held at the Hershey Country Club last Friday, was a tremendous success for Habitat for Humanity of the Greater Harrisburg Area.  More than 200 participants were on hand for the event which raised over $20,000.

Proceeds will go toward supporting Habitat for Humanity’s mission of eliminating poverty housing in Greater Harrisburg Area and the West Shore.

“I think the return of the raffle really helped things this year,” said Habitat’s Assistant Executive Director Antron Watson.  “Habitat’s auction committee put together a fantastic list of items for the silent auction. Of course, this would not have been possible without the generous donations of original art 12959529_10206458739450433_1005405946_owork from local artists.”

Over 20 local artist donated  their pieces which were auctioned off to the high bidder during live auction part of the evening. Habitat also included a few special event packages from Tröegs and Capital Blue Cross in the live auction. B.J. Jennings of the Jennings Auction Group, served as the auctioneer for the event for the fifth straight year.

Also for the fifth straight year, M&T Bank was the event’s Title Event Sponsor.

In his final weeks before retirement, Frank Gilbert of the Hershey Lodge, played a major roll in making the reception a success as he has done for the past five year. Through his volunteerism, several local restaurants and caterers made generous food donations. The reception also included a beer tasting courtesy of Tröegs and a wine tasting provided by Spring Gate Vineyard.

“This event embodies the strongest of all Habitat for Humanity’s beliefs and that is volunteerism,” Watson continued. “I counted more than 20 individuals who volunteered their time to make sure this auction was a resounding success.  I would also like to send out a special thank you to the students from Bishop McDevitt’s Christian Service Club, stepping up for the fifth straight year and on a Friday night, it did not go unnoticed.”