And That's A Wrap!

Erika Callahan

It’s hard to believe that one month ago today, in the middle of what felt like a literal monsoon, Sophie and I were filling the car with gift baskets, posters, and a “few” bottles of wine to drive to Lebanon, Oregon for the 2022 SCOA Nationals, Nuts over Spinone. This was neither Sophie’s nor my first appearance at Nationals, but it was the first time that I was going for reasons other than to be in the company of good human and canine friends. As chairperson of the 2022 Auction, I had the formidable task and privilege of overseeing the silent and live auctions, as well as the three raffles. When Sue and Rebecca asked me to do the honors, I enthusiastically said yes with the caveat that having never run even a bake sale, much less an auction, I would be feeling my way around as though I was still in the whelping box.

Thankfully, I had MANY more experienced friends to guide me along the way. The end result was not just a great and exhilarating learning experience, but most importantly, a real success for the parent club.

Here are a few bulleted highlights from the event:

• Over 130 donations were procured for the two auctions. Items were as varied as collectible t-shirts and hoodies from past nationals, an original paint-by-numbers art kit, goodie baskets, handmade and vintage jewelry, a stay at a luxury Air B&B, Italian steaks, original Spinone “stuffies,” kitchen accessories and more. In addition, there were nine fabulous state baskets and a truckload of wine that was raffled off to the happy winners.
   
• The most competitive and coveted items were both practical and whimsical. Original artwork is always a popular draw, but this year, a complete Puppy Culture training kit and a backpack with first aid and hunting supplies were also big draws
   
• The events raised close to $9,000 for the club --$8,970 to be exact. The live auction generated $4,425 and the silent auction generated $4,545. Definitely, a great showing has especially given that the West Coast hasn’t hosted a national since 2019.
   
• The highest-selling single item from the silent auction was an original ceramic vase created by the great artist, Salvatore la Spada, which sold for $525. The highest selling item from the live auction was the week at the luxury Air B&B in South Carolina, which sold for $500.
   
• Several “juniors” participated in the fun, with three of them actually outspending the adults!

Key learnings for me were that this is a club that really, really cares about our breed and one another. Everybody was eager to help in any way they could, whether the ask was to mind the auction room, hawk raffle tickets, collect and tabulate the cash, tag-team emcee duties,  schlep boxes, unpack and repack boxes, and relentlessly cheer the action.

Special thanks to:

• Laura Penfold and Evan Emmons for teaching me so much and doing a lot of heavy lifting
• Sue Acquistapace for carrying precious and fragile cargo on the longest drive to the event
• Gayle Crane Drew West, Marge Conta, Rebecca Van Ess, and a few others for their incredible artistry
• The “completely ready for primetime” emcee duo of Ted Wentink and Bryson Davis for racking up the big bucks and keeping everybody entertained in the process
• Everyone who participated in a truly fabulous, fun, wonderful event