Auction Guide

This guide is intended to help you understand what the event is, its purpose and impact, and why your participation is so important. Please take a minute to read through it. Thank you!

What Is It?

Started in 1984, the annual auction involves the entire school and much of the community. It is a themed event that has grown into a two-night affair filled with fun and excitement.

Why Do We Do It?

The annual auction is critical to CKS and is the most important fund raising activity of the year. The proceeds have an immediate impact on the quality of the learning experience at CKS. Due to the generosity of previous year's donations, we were able to fund programs such as: state of the art science kits including the WeatherBug program, K-8th grade Spanish language instruction, and a Learning Resource Specialist. Perhaps more importantly, CKS provides educational opportunities to families who otherwise would not be able to send their children to their local parochial school.

This year our goal is to raise $100,000 net. This is a vital part of our core funding, generating approximately 10% of the school's annual budget. The fund-an-item this year will be for technology; upgrading our computers.

Procurement

Family Procurement & Donation

The biggest challenge of the auction is procurement - soliciting items to be donated to the auction. To achieve our financial goal, we need the participation of every school family in the procurement process. We ask each family to donate or procure a total of $150.00 to the auction. $50.00 toward their child's class project and class basket. This contribution is given to your class auction coordinator. In addition, we ask that each family donate or procure at least two auction items worth a total of $100.00. In each auction newsletter, we'll provide you with some great ideas for items we'd love to get, and ideas for how to solicit donations.

The Procurement Form

Each item you donate or procure must have a procurement form associated with it. This is vital for tracking the items and making sure the donor is properly recognized at the auction. Make sure you complete the procurement form in its entirety, and turn it in to the auction box in the office for every item you procure or donate. Procurement forms can be found in the school office, or online at http://www.ckseattle.org/school/auction/Procurement_Form.pdf. We've also posted an e-mail letter and other tools on this web page to help you procure great items.

Class Baskets & Projects

Each class is responsible for donating a themed "basket" and class project. These are coordinated by a parent volunteer in each class. The class projects are generally auctioned off during the Saturday night live auction and this year we are auctioning off the class baskets during the Friday night live auction.

Sponsorship/Advertising

In recognition of the focused marketing opportunity our auction provides, we have developed special programs that permit donors to become sponsors. Sponsors receive additional recognition and benefits during the auction in exchange for a financial donation.

Your business also has the opportunity to advertise in the auction catalog for a small fee. The catalog is handed out to all auction attendees on the night of the events, and typically reaches up to 350 people.

If advertising or sponsorship is of interest to you for your own business, or you know of others who might be interested in this great visibility opportunity, please contact auction@ckseattle.org.

Get Involved!

In addition to procuring and donating items, we need volunteers to help us organize, coordinate, and put on this huge event. A detailed volunteer request form will be sent out soon, so please make sure you sign up for a task. Whether large or small, your contributions of time and energy are welcome and appreciated. Remember, all auction activities can be counted toward your school commitment hours.