Slideshow: Annual Bids 4 Kids Auction Earns About $1.75M – RVBusiness – Breaking RV Industry News
ELKHART, Ind, – The 24th Annual Bids 4 Kids Dinner & Auction, a popular charitable event that’s drawn impressive support over the years around the RV-building capitol of Elkhart, Ind., was held Friday night (Oct. 4) in the Northern Indiana Event Center and RV/MH Hall of Fame’s newly expanded, 36,000-square-foot East Wing.
And once again, the results of the auction, featuring a memorable catered dinner and an appreciable crowd of RV industry players, didn’t disappoint the event’s leadership including LCI Industries Inc. President and CEO Jason Lippert who has personally spearheaded the fun-filled fundraiser dedicated to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Elkhart County for the last 17 years and currently co-chairs the event with LCI Social Impact Strategist Michilah Grimes.
This year’s unofficial auction revenues at press time: More than $1.75 million, a total that is particularly noteworthy on the heels of a couple of “tough years” for the nation’s RV business, Lippert told RVBusiness, adding that Elkhart usually ranks in the top three for Boys & Girls Club fund-raising nationally.
“It was great,” said Lippert, who especially wanted to commend Boys & Girls Club staffers Jamee Holmes and Matt Fischer for helping to set up and run the event. “I mean, we had a lot of familiar faces that are friends of the club and leaders of the industry show up and bid big. And a lot of people donated items and sponsored. So, those three things usually play the largest role in how we do. And just to have everybody come out and participate like they did and nearly set a record, it was pretty incredible.”
Obviously, those kinds of financial proceeds clearly stand out from the crowd among charitable fundraisers in general whether they’re in northern Indiana, New York City or L.A. as a result of Friday’s live and silent auctions and a wide array of cash donations. “You know, it’s just incredible that a little town like Elkhart can come together and raise more money than most of these big metro areas,” he told RVB.com.
Indeed, the prices paid for live Bids 4 Kids auction items in themselves are often pretty eye-catching. Consider these examples from Friday night in an auction gaveled by popular auctioneer Joe Mast and hosted on stage by local personality Vince Turner, a member of the Elkhart County Sports Hall of Fame and a longtime volunteer, along with his wife, Pat, for the Boys & Girls Club:
- A Weeklong 6-Bedroom Napa Valley Home Stay: $55,000
- 2 bottles of Caymus Cabernet Wine: $25,000 (sold 3 times)
- A Commemorative Winchester Wells Fargo Rifle: $20,000
- A Montana Big Sky Country Trip for Two People: $30,000
- An Italian “Ancient Charm” Experience for 4: $35,000 (sold twice)
- Exclusive Outing at Michael Jordan’s Fla. Golf Course: $37,500
- First Turn Seats for 2 at the 2025 Kentucky Derby: $30,000
- South African Adventures for Two: $17,500 (sold twice)
- Golf with Jason Lippert at Blackthorn: $17,500 (sold twice)
- A cuter-than-heck male Cavapoo puppy: $20,000
Meanwhile, the Bids 4 Kids auction’s roster of up-front supporters was led by presenting sponsors Bill and Kristin Fenech, Consolidated Metals Inc., Jeffrey & Sabrina Kime, Lippert and Aunalytics.
