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You are here: Home / Blog Post / [VIDEO] Free donations to sell at school auctions, like Spirit Rock
Mar 29

[VIDEO] Free donations to sell at school auctions, like Spirit Rock

Sherry Truhlar 4 Comments

Spirit rock at school auctionI’m working with a lot of schools right now as this is the height of school auction season.  In keeping with the season, here’s an idea specifically for you school auction committees.

I’m often asked for ideas for items that a committee can procure for “free.” 

By “free,” the committee means they won’t have to ask a company for a donation.  It can also reference the fact that the item itself doesn’t have a hard financial value associated to it. 

Some more common examples of free items are below.

10 free school auction ideas for items
  • VIP seats to graduation or another event of significance, such as the spring musical program or Christmas Eve mass.
  • Headmaster for a Day / Security officer for a Day / School Chef for a Day / School Nurse for a Day / etc.
  • Name the playground /Name the Driveway / Name the Study Hall
  • Reserved parking spaces for parents or students old enough to drive
  • Student gets to be the reader for morning announcements
  • Fly your university’s colors on the school flag pole for one day
  • Pull the school fire alarm during the next fire alarm drill
  • First spot in the carpool lane /pick-up lane / drop-off lane
  • Out of uniform day or week for a child /class /grade
  • Food service for a year for your child’s lunch meals
Another creative “free” donation is the opportunity to paint a school Spirit Rock. 

What’s a Spirit Rock?

It’s a large rock, often placed at the end of the school driveway, near the playing fields, or at another visible area on campus.  The winning bidder can paint it however they wish.  Usually the rock is large enough that it has multiple sides for painting, allowing the messages to change. 

At one school auction, a Spirit Rock sold for $2400 the first year it was offered.  Here’s how it was described in the catalog:

“The chance to paint your version of school spirit on the large rock located on the school’s corner entrance can be yours for one year!  Buy it yourself, or go in on the bidding with others.  Dedicate the rock to your kids, their class(es), a faculty member, a school team or activity, a school milestone event, or whatever is notable to you.  The winner of the rock will begin painting the rock in August of the 2014-2015 school year.”

It can be fun to drop one or two of these free items into a school auction line-up — but don’t overdo it.   For the strongest auction results, you want to have some items with more concrete values, too.

Last winter I shot a video talking about a Spirit Rock.  You can view it below.

For more help on planning a great live auction, check out this master class, Lucrative Live Auctions.
Lucrative Live Auctions
The course is designed to help Auction Chairs improve (or launch) a live auction by teaching about items, ordering, tracking, selling, games specific to the live auction, and more.

Get details here and find out what you’ve been missing in donations.

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Copyright © 2016 Red Apple Auctions Co. All Rights Reserved

About Sherry Truhlar

Fundraising auctioneer and educator, helping schools and nonprofits plan more profitable benefit auctions. A prolific writer for her own blog and other fundraising sites, she’s been covered in The Beacon-News, Town & Country Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Northern Virginia Magazine, Wiley's Special Events Galore!, AUCTIONEER, and other publications.

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Comments

  1. Sherry Truhlar says

    May 8, 2016 at 9:05 PM

    UPDATE: Last night I sold a Spirit Rock for $2000 in a Washington, D.C. auction. The co-chairs had read about the idea on this post.

    Reply
  2. Denise says

    April 8, 2016 at 4:45 PM

    FREE is great!

    Sherry, with large thanks to you and the amazing suggestions on your website, our golf tournament raised $10,000 year one, $14,000 year two and $30,000 year three.

    My nephew Kevin was shot and rendered quadriplegic in Philadelphia in 2011—our family had no idea how to fundraise to help cover Kevin’s medical expenses. Five years later, we pretend to be pros; we are so grateful for your great resources!

    Just one example….you suggested contacting malls about bag donations. I was expecting shopping bags…I got canvas messenger bags for each golfer. Never would have dreamed about that as a potential donation. And I have a laundry list of great ideas “lifted” from you.

    Can’t wait to see how we do this year!

    https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fokn-golfin-2016-tickets-20936743363

    Reply
    • Sherry Truhlar says

      April 8, 2016 at 5:01 PM

      Whoa, what a story. I don’t know if there is a formal name for these types of auctions, but I call them “personal emergency” auctions. It might be an auction for a family when their home burns down, or a fireman is killed and leaves behind young children, or — in your case — an accident that renders the individual with massive unexpected medical bills. I often see these being “once and done” events, but you’ve managed to create some momentum.

      First, I’ve no doubt this tournament and your work on it is a needed help to your nephew and his family. Second, that’s a 300% growth in 2 years, Denise. 300%!!!

      You should have a real sense of satisfaction on your part for learning new skills to raise this money. I’m a big fan of keeping those brain cells firing by learning and trying new things, and you’re certainly doing that. I’m happy for your success and appreciate you inspiring others in the Red Apple Auctions’ community with your comment. Good luck in 2016!

      Reply
      • Denise says

        April 8, 2016 at 6:21 PM

        You are the best! Thank you!

        Reply

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Sherry, oh, Sherry! You were an invaluable asset to this year’s gala. With your assistance we were able to add so many new elements that truly made a difference in taking our event to another level. This year was the most successful yet! Everyone loved you and the amazing energy that you brought to the event. We look forward to having you again in 2018!

Krystal Fenwick

Thank you so much for the outstanding job you did for us on April 1! I have received so much positive feedback from so many who attended. You even earned Sister Suzan’s (our Vice-Principal) seal of approval! Safe travels to all your many events and thank you for making our biggest fundraiser of the year our best ever!

Diane Albano, Director of Development
St. Joseph Academy Catholic High School (St. Augustine, FL)

Sherry is flexible and easy to work with. She gives honest feedback and advice throughout the planning and implementation process. Without a doubt, Sherry and Red Apple Auctions has helped take our annual fundraising event to the next level.

Beckie Middendorf, Development Director and Janet Gulla, Development Coordinator
St. Henry District High School (Erlanger, KY)

Sherry is “on board” from day one of auction planning, works closely with our steering committee and is only just a phone call away. The night of the auction, we toss her the keys and let her drive the event! We are never disappointed!

Charly Ryan, Director of Institutional Advancement
The Academy of the Holy Cross (Kensington, MD)

I was very fortunate to have Red Apple on board for my first auction. Working with Sherry was invaluable. She provided guidance at every phase of planning, from procurement on forward – and she challenged us to make our event more ambitious and more successful at every stage. Thank you, Sherry!

Pete Goldlust, Director of Development
Oak Hill School (Eugene, OR)

If your auction needs to upgrade, call any auctioneer you find on Google. But if you want your auction to be impressive, meaningful, and profitable, you need to call Sherry.

Erin Banda
2016 NYUMBANI Board member

The auction was entertaining .. proactive … the crowd was involved and felt a part of it,” he said, emphasizing, “The entertainment value was huge.

Darrell, a long-time attendee

We plan on booking Red Apple Auctions much earlier for our next event so we can take advantage of more of the pre-event offerings.

Nicole Carr, Director of Grants and Special Events
The Ivymount School (Rockville, MD)

2012 Oakcrest Anne and CarolinaSherry, personally, I can’t even begin to tell you the immense amount of positive feedback that I received having YOU (and Darby) there with is this… Read The Rest “Anne Livaudais Knudsen, 5th year gala co-chair”

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Most product & consulting remarks are found on their respective webpages, but I’ve listed two below so you’re assured my products are as spot-on as my auctioneering.   Not only was our 2013 auction a blast, but our Washington, D.C. public school raised $67,000 — that’s $25,000 more than last year! The evening went… Read The Rest “Carolyn Kahn-Hall and Andrea Del Vecchio”

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