After the Auction....
         an interview with KM Care & Share Auction Chair, Lisa Peterson

Now that the auction has ended, how do feel about the outcome?
We are pleased to announce that the 2011 KM Care & Share Annual Auction has proven to be another great success.  The event itself is no small task with much of the preperations taking place as early as July for the annual November event.  Many volunteers spend countless hours preparing, organizing and promoting the event which raises monies to aid fellow community members in times of need.  To those volunteers we say THANK YOU!  Your efforts have once again brought in a siginificant amount of funding for the upcoming year. 
The suspense is unbearable, What was this years auction total? This years total (at the time of this printing) was: $31,083.50 - one of our highest recorded totals to date. 
Where does all the money come from?  The bulk of our funding comes from the live and silent auction items themselves.   However, we do have other sources such as our Gifts from the Heart program, the raffle conducted at the auction, cash donations, and dessert proceeds.
You didn't mention the dinner proceeds? Does Care and Share receive money from that part of the event as well?  While this was the case in years past, KM Care and Share does not recieve a portion of dinner tickets sold at the auction event.  However, we do receive proceeds from dessert.
Explain the cash doantions you receive?   Few people realize that  generous donors from our community mail in cash donations prior to the auction.   These donations come from individuals as well as businesses and foundations. Those donations were up by $3,000 this year (compared to previous years) prior to the auction.  The auction committee appreciates the funding we receive from these donors as often times we cannot guarantee what an auction item may bring.
How do you determine the value of the items up for sale at the auction from year to year?  This is by far the toughest part of the job. While every item we receive is a profitable item for us, it is a constant balance to raise much needed funds while obtaining a reasonable return on a donors item.  The hard truth is that sometimes things just don't go for the determined retail value.  Then there are those items that prove to be the "hot ticket" each year and go beyond your wildest dreams.  We have been lucky to have more of one than the other.
In your experience, what is the secret to the auctions successs?  Honestly, it is the community.  Not only do we have great donors, those donors come out and support us by bidding and promoting us.  Word of mouth is the best advertising in a small town.  It is the community who wants us to succeed and it is the community that drives us to work hard for that success.
Any final words?  THANK YOU! to everyone - volunteers, my fellow Auction Chair Charlie Sinnwell and his co-auctioneer Kevin Marring, KSB for their clerking services, the Kasson Chamber of Commerce and its members for their years of advertising funding, all of our donors, bidders, supporters and most of all my family for putting up with me amidst the chaos of auction preparations -  with special thanks to my husband Mike for allowing me to take over the garage during "auction season".  Thank you one and all!