Annual ‘Bids 4 Kids’ Charity Auction Again Tops Expectations

The annual “Bids 4 Kids” auction supporting the  Boys and Girls Clubs of Elkhart County took place Oct. 7 at the RV/MH Hall of Fame’s Orthwein Pavilion in Elkhart, Ind. (Courtesy photos)

LCI Industries President and Jason Lippert, left, and Michilah Grimes, Lippert’s Director of Corporate and Community Impact.

More than 150 donors amounting to a virtual “Who’s Who” of the North American RV and marine industries again stepped up Friday evening (Oct. 7) to support the Boys and Girls Clubs of Elkhart County as part of the annual “Bids 4 Kids” auction at the RV/MH Hall of Fame’s Orthwein Pavilion in Elkhart, Ind.

The auction featured quick opening comments from LCI Industries President and CEO Jason Lippert – who has spearheaded the charity auction for 15 years – plus live entertainment, a catered dinner, silent and live auctions and – as usual – some bids so generous that the fund-raising auction’s total net proceeds exceeded $2 million.

“Every year we say it can’t get any better than the year we just had,” said Lippert. “We just somehow seem to outdo ourselves. But the (auction) committees come up with a lot. We just try to get more creative every year with some of the items. And we have a lot of great people that donate items who showed up huge despite the fact that I was a little nervous beforehand given the state of the RV business right now. But it obviously didn’t stop anybody from bidding big.”

Attendees enjoying their time at the Bids 4 Kids auction.

Bidding big?

Two items sold for more than $100,000 each, one of them involving a golf outing at Michael Jordan’s exclusive “The Grove XXIII” golf course in Hobe Sound, Fla. A one-night venture in which the winner is joined by Jason Lippert and two other winning bidders, the trip entails a private jet flight to West Palm Beach plus overnight accommodations.

The other high-dollar sale enables the winning bidder and a guest to experience a day on the set of one of Taylor Sheridan’s film or television productions. Sheridan, the co-producer, writer and director of award-winning shows “Yellowstone” and “1883,” owns Bosque Ranch, located above the Brazos River in Texas.

Also generating major interest – about $80,000 — was a week-long stay in a six-bedroom Napa Valley home that includes winery and vineyard tours.

Attendees were encouraged to wear apparel from their favorite sports team.

Among the more eye-catching items, moreover, were two puppies, an adorable Mini Goldendoodle and a cuter-than-heck “Pomsky” Pomerian-Husky mix , that went to two different bidders for a total of about $30,000.

“We’re just grateful for all the RV and marine industry people, 90% of the crowd, who made this event possible both from the sponsorship and bidding sides, which is where the bulk of the money comes from,” quipped Lippert. “We had a hundred Lippert staffers there bidding, which is awesome, and 40 Lippert volunteers working there.

“So, Lippert supports it big time,” he added. “And then, I’d just like to point out just how gracious everybody is that night. It’s coming together to make a better place for a lot of kids. We drive values and everything that they do in their programming. And it’s just awesome that we’re setting up these kids and the club for the long term.”

The auction raised more than $2 million for the Boy and Girls Club of Elkhart County.

Presenting sponsors for the 22nd annual Bids 4 Kids auction included Consolidated Metals Inc., Lippert and the Ron and Lisa Fenech Foundation while Vince Turner, a Boys and Girls club board member, again served as emcee and auctioneer Joseph Mast gaveled the live bidding.

Added Director of Corporate and Community Impact Michilah Grimes: “The event this year has really made me take a step back and realize that for twelve years I have witnessed this community’s dedication to changing the trajectory of future generations, while seeing them recognize each child as an individual who deserves the best chance at every good thing this life has to offer.

“We are incredibly blessed to live in a community that when asked to jump, immediately says, ‘How high?’ It is this spirit of caring that ties us together and truly makes this world a better place.’

Source: https://rvbusiness.com/annual-bids-4-kids-charity-auction-again-tops-expectations/