To all that travelled from near and far to attend our bi-annual major auction, our heartfelt appreciation for making our day the amazing success that it was. As the first major event of this year’s Committee it was a measure of our capabilities to work as a team, not only on the day but in all of the preparation in the preceding weeks leading up to the event. Your committee arrived, bright and early, cream filled lamingtons, data projectors, screens and pies and many permanent markers to name a few items, in tow. We should have known that even the few late stragglers booking in fish would not delay the start, and at 2:02pm, the two minute delay a computer glitch, it was underway. By 3:30pm the hall could not contain all our members and guests anymore and they went spilling out the doors. One of the auctioneers recounts that there was a bidders card attached to an arm flashing in and out from one of the exit doors but that was all he could see. At around 10:30pm I had a rare moment to look around the room and reflect these images. I saw my tired, but still smiling team mates with almost as much energy as at the start, every seat in the hall still filled and then some, Andreas and his wife Sharon, with committee member Joe working tirelessly behind the computer screens, an almost empty stage filled with empty styro foam of the hours passed and old friends and new, some that had travelled far and still had far to travel after it would end - and I too smiled.
Some of you may find the following statistics interesting and for some eye opening at what we were able to achieve. 184 visitors came through our doors
12 signed up as new members
14 members renewed their membership
just under 800 (795) lots were auctioned in under nine hours 9 lots were donated by a brand new rock and wood importer Rock and Timber Aqua Deco our 7 (see their ads in this month’s mag) existing sponsors were responsible for the raffles being a success 1 special auction day sponsor Pretty Fancy Fish donated three fry savers and all of the 1418 jelly beans for our guessing comp
at 3:30pm there was almost 280 people in the hall and hanging out the doors
19 committee members ran the day
12 volunteers helped them
300 BBQ sausages were sold and/or eaten by the committee
150 pies were consumed
200 lamingtons went the same way
yes it was a seller’s market (for a change) the average cost per bag was $27.30 we had 4 raffles
a guessing comp a children’s colouring in contest
the auction closed at 11:00pm – woohoo!!!
In response to all that have contacted me despairing on too many yellows and bristlenose - this is a chorus we hear every year - and it will be sung in the future as well. Our hobby demands them and breeders respond loud and clear. I too would love to see a rarer sample, but it is not what drives us all. I started typing all the names of those that helped but feared that I would leave someone out so on behalf of the committee thank you to all that prepared, assisted on the day and before, and those that attended. The success of the auction would not have been possible without your presence, hard work and dedication, your invaluable contribution serving to make the 2006 NSWCS October Major Auction a celebration of our hobby and an event to remember by Aline Sinclair
