In the books: another auction, another record

There was no shortage of hometown pride on display – and on the auction block – at the Blooming Prairie Cancer Auction.

Lindsey French, Mandy Doocy, Lexi LaMontagne and Tammy Busho were co-organizers; several sub-committees focused on specific pieces of the two-day event, which broke another record.

“We put it on,” Doocy said of their roles, “but the community is just… They’re just so generous.”

In this, the 24^th year, preliminary numbers indicate the group raised more than $147,000 last weekend.

The money came from two nights of auctions, an afternoon and evening of Bingo, and hundreds of generous people.

The biggest boost came from the Reed Miller estate. On behalf of the family, Jim O’Connor presented a check for $25,000 – each night. The $50,000 is earmarked for the community fund, which provides support for cancer patients and their families in the form of parking passes, Visa cards and help with household expenses.

Miller was a 1980 graduate of Blooming Prairie High School; he died of cancer in 2022 at the age of 60.

Another significant presentation came from the Ellendale Fire Department, which once again donated $8,000 to the event.

In addition to the auctions and Bingo events, raffle tickets were sold; Steve Prihoda’s family and friends made their annual donation for a cash raffle in his memory.

Sportsman’s Bingo – formerly known as Gun Bingo – brought in about $12,000.

The group passed the $1 million mark in 2021, with much of that going toward cancer research, in addition to shoring up the community fund.

Last year’s fundraiser brought in more than $137,000; the year before, it was about $100,000.

While the city’s 1925 cone top water tower that sat in the southeast corner of Central Park was taken down about a year ago, its distinctive little red cap lends itself to nostalgic art pieces.

That became evident during the live auctions held Sept. 5 and 6 under the big tent set up outside the Cue Company.

Likenesses of the water tower were sold in the form of metal replicas donated by Dennis Heimerman; prints of the tower, with gift certificates for framing, donated by Krisi Lillie and the BP Cancer Group; and a glass print, donated by Viracon and Brandy Jacobson.

Other local items included plenty of homemade goods – like pickles, cookies, cheesecakes, lefse, salsa, Hope butter, pastries and cakes – and nonedible offerings like quilts, a Blossom arcade, paintings and wood crafts.

For folks looking for adventure away from home, there was a Fort Meyers Beach vacation home stay donated by Rod and Tess Koster; four tickets to the Minnesota Zoo; a gift certificate to Great Wolf Lodge indoor water parks; and a two-night cabin stay at Brookside Campground.

There was a way to get to most places, too: a ride to and from the airport, donated by Connie Trom and Cheri Krejci; or a four-hour party bus rental, donated by Tony Kramer.

Speaking of Kramers, two signed Tommy Kramer jerseys were donated by Randy Ritts and HyVee Owatonna. Kramer was the quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings from 1977 to 1990.

Speaking of the Vikings, other auction items included four tickets to the Vikings-Bears game on Nov. 16; a couple of Vikings tailgate baskets; a Vikings table and a Vikings mailbox.

The golfers in the crowd also had several options, including a stay-and-play golf package donated by Mystic Lake Casino; a golf outing for four at the Owatonna Country Club; a basket of items from Inside Swing; a golf outing for four at Austin Country Club; golfing for four at Coffee Mill Golf Course in Wabasha and a basket of items from Blooming Prairie Country Club.

The record-breaking total was set with a smaller-than-normal crowd, Doocy said, possibly because of temperatures that dipped into the low 50s Friday night, into the 40s Saturday night.

Express Power Washers provided a large heater to use in the tent.

“It was good,” Doocy said. “It was a really good year.”