Last night was my third year working with Carlson School of Management’s Women in Business organization to put on their charity benefit for Women’s advocates. I’ve mentioned before how amazing these young women are and I won’t stop. This is a student run organization that has outdone themselves again!

The first year I did this auction it was held in a lecture room full of about 60 students wearing jeans and sweatshirts. It was like pulling teeth to get any money out of them.

Last year, they got creative and held the auction in the VIP suite in TCF Bank stadium and served fancy appitzers and threw in a fashion show (thanks to Kohls) and had about 150 there.

This year, they were forced to rent a the larger DQ VIP suite at TCF Bank Stadium to house their 300 attendees and their runway stage for their fashion show. We auctioned off each of the outfits (donated by Kohls) as well as 6 live auction packages! It was amazing! Everyone was dressed in semi-formal attire. If you walked into this room, you would never have guessed it was a student run event. These girls are AMAZING and smart! I am so proud of them and feel honored when they ask me back every year.

This event is near and dear to my heart because it is where it all started. Their auction was where I first met a female auctioneer who inspired me to become one myself. It is the first benefit auction I ever did. They provided me with loads of grace my first year and have been with me for 5 years now and have seen me become the auctioneer I am today.

This year their event was “A Night on Broadway” where everyone dressed up in broadway themed garb. People were representing everything from Cats to the Newsies to Singing in the Rain to Phantom of the Opera! It was a blast! The students and teachers came together to perform sketches straight from the musicals.

The real highlight of the night was the two individuals who each gave $5000 matching gifts. One went towards the live auction and one went towards the fund-a-need. Needless to say, it was a total success!

Do you remember the Kingdom Undone auction I did back in October? It was held at the Yellow Tree Theater. I loved the venue then and I was so honored that they asked me to come back and be the auctioneer for their event.

They had used professional auctioneers before, but never an auctioneer that specialized in benefit and fundraising events. This, as a professional benefit auctioneer, is the biggest compliment I can receive. After seeing me at the Kingdom Undone a

I neglected to take any pictures at this event, so I looked for some on google. This is Jason and Jessica (founders of Yellow Tree Theater) performing together. They make my heart flutter.

uction they said that they recognized the need to have someone who specializes in fundraising. I could probably sell cattle at auction, but I could not sell it well. This is the same for a cattle auctioneer selling at a fundraising event. Our crowds are way different. I read a crowd and work them until I know there is no money left. That’s why people ask me to come back year after year.

I’ve mentioned before how I loved this venue, and this event only confirmed it. The layout was so different from the first time so as to fit the larger crowd. The venue is so versitile.

What I love about this group is their commitment to local theater. They are located in the suburbs on purpose. They want to educate a community that is not as exposed to the arts community. Jason and Jessica Peterson (founders of the Yellow Tree Theater) are passionate and ambitious and have built a supportive and enthusiastic community. I feel so blessed to have met them!

YELLOW TREE THEATRE.

This weekend I had the pleasure to work with the parents and volunteers at the Wayzata Family Learning Center. These are wonderful families who are committed to raising strong, independant and smart children. I was so encouraged by their support of other families in the community who can’t necessarily afford the extra classes and support the FLC offers. Their generosity during the fund-a-need was inspiring. I’m proud to say we raised over $18,000 for the Wayzata Family Learning Center on Saturday!

Thank you so much for having me!

Last night I was surrounded by people who were passionate about early childhood development. Parents, teachers, grandparents and volunteers alike came together to raise money for the Wayzata Family Learning Center.

I was so impressed by the ambitious spirit of the auction volunteers. They had dollar raffles, a cork pick, heads and tails, and a remote raffle all on top of both the silent and live auction and the fund-a-need. All of their hard work paid off as they raised over $18K that evening!

The Prior Lake Rotary Valentine’s Day Gala was last night. They hosted it at the Wild’s Golf Course in Prior Lake. I’ve done events within the Prior Lake community before and it was great to be with a lot of the same folks.

I’m just going to point out some of the night’s highlights:

• Dessert auction was a success thanks to donations from Edelweiss Bakery and Cocoa and Fig
• Fund-a-need to eliminate Polio throughout the world – only 4 countries to go! Every year the Rotary donates millions of dollars towards the cure of Polio worldwide
• Post Dinner Dance – music provided by Steve Miller & Diamondhead

Thanks for having me!

Last night I worked a crowd of some of the most interesting athletes for the Minnesota Boat Club event, held at their very own Minnesota Boat Club Facility. Traditionally, I’ve thought of rowing to be a sport for Ivy League students. Forgive me for my naivity, because the people involved in the Minnesota Boat Club are range from teens to senior citizens. One thing they have in common is their love to be on the water! They have clubs for beginners and competition rowers.

They had fabulous items that were specific to their audience like sky rowing (an experience created by the same Minnesota man who invented rollerblades), a chance to take a barge down the Mississippi and various rowing equipment. We also had the chance to do raise money towards a new boat for the entire club to use.

Successful night! Thank you so much for having me!

Last night I was LITERALLY surrounded by beauty queens! The absolutely beautiful (gleaming inside and out) Mrs. Minnesota, Mindy Urzua hosted the first annual Minnesota-based Children’s Palliative Care Event at the Burnsville Fine Arts Center. She rounded up tens of Minnesota Mrs, Miss and Junior Miss contestants to serve as volunteers. Mindy has worked as a nurse in Hospice care for several years and was approached to be the spokes person for Children’s Palliative Care which provides support to families who are sacrificing to give their children the comfort of hospice care.

It was a beautiful event with loyal supporters. Mindy’s heart was transparrent and her joy was contageous.

Mindy Urzua and her loyal volunteers!

Jeremiah and Vanessa Gamble created the play, Kingdom Undone, to bring the life of Jesus down to earth. They shared snippets of it last night and it was absolutely unbelievable. I can’t wait until March 22nd when the show opens!

They were planning on having their close friend Michael Pearce Donley play an auctioneer for the evening and last minute decided they wanted a “real” auctioneer. That is where I came in. I had the honor to tag-team the live auction with Michael Pearce Donley (a founding member of Triple Espresso) as he created original songs to introduce each item on the live auction. It was a blast! The crowd was so supportive and loved the humor and fast pace of the live auction and returned their appreciation with liberal bidding!

Side Note: This event was held at the Yellow Tree Theater in Anoka. I was so impressed by this venue. It is great for organizations located in the north/western suburbs. From the outside, it looks like another strip mall warehouse, but once you walk in you find yourself immersed into a world of warm, welcoming creativity. If you don’t have a location for your next event, I HIGHLY recommend the Yellow Tree Theater.