The Boys & Girls Club of Greeneville & Greene County held their 23rd annual Celebrity Auction on Saturday, October 1, 222, at the Greeneville Parks & Recreation’s East View Center and it was a big success. The event raised over $70,000 for the local Boys & Girls Club’s activities and programs.  The auction was held to raise funds for the Boys & Girls Club programs and activities and featured over 660 items. Items ranged from vacation packages, meals at local restaurant and businesses certificates and items, to memorabilia and autographs from the world of sports, politics, music, TV, movies, notables, and many other unique pieces.

    “We had a good crowd, great food and a lot of unique items to bid on this year in both the live and silent auction,” stated Rebecca Tipton, a board member, and the co-chairman of this year’s event along with Eddie Yokley. Several bidders in attendance stated that they were always amazed at how the Boys & Girls Club was able to get so many different items. Many unique items were on display for sale as there was something for everyone at this year’s event. Laura Pendleton, a Boys & Girls Club board member stated, “The Boys & Girls Club was very pleased with the generous bids the Boys & Girls Club received this year. Our success was due to the hard work of all the Boys & Girls Club staff, board and event volunteers that put this auction together. We are grateful to the members of our community that came and bid generously to make this event a huge success and to all of the donors that help supply items for this event.”
    This year’s event was title sponsored by Forward Air and Summers Taylor. The other major sponsors of this year’s event included: Greeneville Light & Power System, John Deere, Power Equipment, Stowers Machinery, Vulcan Materials, Greeneville Federal Bank, Meade Equipment and Rogers Manufacturing.
     The top selling item of the night was a John Deere S130 Riding Mower that was donated by John Deere Power Products.  The next highest selling item was a Husqvarna Riding Mower donated by Helen Smith.  Other items that sold with great interest included: Wyndham Resort vacation stay donated by Dr. Daniel Lewis, a Char Broil Gas Grill donated by Helen Smith, Drexel Coffee Table, Gel Memory Foam Queen Mattress from Sleep Solutions Mattress Gallery, Sapphire and White Sapphire Pendant from Legacy Jewelers, wooden American flag made by Mike Lane & Jaxton Hirschy, YETI Roadie 24 Hard Cooler, Spartan 40 Volt Chainsaw with Battery Charger from Grand Rental Station, Publix Super Market gift card, Megalodon Fossilized Shark Tooth donated by Dr. Chris Bullington, Riverside Towers vacation package in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee , Bent Creek Golf Village vacation package in Gatlinburg, Tennessee donated by Eddie & Carolyn Yokley, Tennessee vs Missouri Football Tickets donated by Dr. Daniel Lewis, Margaritaville Bahamas Frozen Concoction Maker, donated by Dr. Chris Bullington, Tennessee Volunteers Corn Hole boards made by Tony Ottinger, Spencer Strider of the Atlanta Braves MLB Authenticated Autographed Baseball, Snapps Ferry Packing Ribeye package, WCYB TV 5, Fox 39 Tri Cities and The CW $1,500 in TV Advertising, Barter Theatre in Abingdon, Virginia Tickets, autographed Mini Helmet of DJ Moore of the Carolina Panthers donated by Dr. Daniel Lewis, Tennessee vs UT Martin Football Tickets, donated by Dr. Daniel Lewis, Pizza Inn Gift Certificates, Pat Summitt Tennessee Lady Vols Autographed Basketball donated by Dr. Chris Bullington, Tennessee Volunteers NCAA National Championship Replica Ring donated by Eddie & Nicole Brown, Michael Vick Atlanta Falcons Autographed Jersey donated by Dr. Daniel Lewis, Hollywood Casino vacation stay in Biloxi, Mississippi, General Morgan Inn & Conference Center stay, Graysburg Hills Golf Course Golf package, Twin Creeks Golf Course Golf package, Fairfield Inn & Suites in Destin, Florida vacation stay, Nova's Sushi Bar & Grille Gift certificates, Drury Hotels vacation stay, Birkenstock Footwear, Dogwalk Designs Gather Door Plaque made by Lisa Scott Fisher , South Pointe Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada vacation & show package, Garmin Approach S42 GPS golf watch, Zakai Zeigler of the Tennessee Vols autographed basketball, Josiah-Jordan James of the Tennessee Vols autographed basketball, Greeneville High School 2010 TSSAA Football State Championship Replica Ring donated by Eddie & Nicole Brown, Caledonia Golf & Fish Club in Pawleys Island, South Carolina golf package, Boys & Girls Club Custom Made Cutting Board made by Mark & Laura Pendleton, Tennessee Volunteers Charcuterie Board made by Tony Ottinger, Nothing Bundt Cakes in Johnson City Cake & party Package, Tractor Supply Company Lantern Windchime, True Wireless Headphones, and Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders autographed cheer squad boot and autographed Squad Pictures
    Scott Bullington, Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Club stated that he wanted to thank the great board members of the Boys & Girls Club, the Celebrity Auction committee, and the volunteers of his organization for pulling together this team effort that made the auction such a success. “We could not achieve our continued successes without the efforts of these individuals. We are very fortunate to have such a caring group to support our community’s youth,” stated Bullington. He also stated that the organization was very fortunate to get so many items in the mail from celebrities across the country and beyond.  “You can tell that these people care about kids”, he added
     Chuck Bowlin, Boys & Girls Club board President stated, “We are very grateful that the Boys & Girls Club is able to get items from so many businesses and notables and the great local and regional items that complement the auction. We could not have the event that we have without this most generous support.”  Andy Schlesing, a member of the Boys & Girls Club Board, expressed thanks to, “Scott Bullington, Jessica Poore, Peyton Malone, and all the wonderful staff members of the Boys & Girls Club and also thanked the many volunteers that helped to make this year’s event a success.”  He also praised the great work by Josh Swatzell who volunteered as the evening’s auctioneers. Boys & Girls Club board member Tim Ward expressed thanks to the many volunteers that helped pull items and helped with the check out and to Angeez Catering for the excellent food provided for the event.
    Events such as the Celebrity Auction help to fund the local Boys & Girls Club activities and staffing. The school year membership at the Boys & Girls Club is $ 25 per child per school year and $175 for the entire summer program. The Boys & Girls Club is open to all school-age youth who reside in Greeneville and Greene County. The Boys & Girls Club has various programs for youth development including character and leadership development, arts, sports fitness and recreation, education and career development and health and life skills. The local Boys & Girls Club has received many state and local awards for its community involvement and youth development programs over the past few years and remains a leader in youth development for our community. The Boys & Girls Club serves many youth each year through its after-school & summer programs, school outreach projects and youth sports events. For more information on the Boys & Girls Club, stop by at 740 West Church Street, or call 787-9322 or 787-9334 or visit the Club’s Facebook page or the Club website at www.ggcbgc.org. To see additional pictures from this year’s event, visit the Club’s Facebook page.

Check out our social media sites to see more photos from our previous celebrity auctions!