Photo By Staff Sgt. Richard Hoppe | The Bayview Restaurant patio fills up with diners and participants of the Army auction...... read more read more
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GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Guantanamo Bay community members flooded the Bayview Restaurant April 30 for more than a taste of Mongolian beef and cuisine. Members also came to participate in the 3rd Annual Army Birthday Celebration Auction to help raise funds for the Army Birthday Celebration taking place June 13 in the Windjammer Ballroom.
The auction helps keep ticket prices lower by alleviating some of the expenses associated with the celebration. Over the years, the auction, which is hosted by the Army Birthday Celebration Committee, has been proven to be the primary fundraiser for the event.
“This really brings in a lot of our fundraising … with the items that we auction off,” said Capt. Noelle Douglas, member of the Army Birthday Celebration Committee and coordinator for the fundraiser auction. “We also get to reach out to the community, and they get to help out with the Army Birthday Celebration as well.”
Leftover funds will cycle back into the Army Ball Committee to help the following year’s celebration. Tickets are allotted to battalions of the JTF, JDG and the community. There are 275 seats available at this year’s Army Birthday Celebration.
“It’s a good thing. Everybody’s over here having a good time. Nobody felt pressured to be here and its stuff that people want,” said Pfc. Randal Snider, with the 447th Military Police Company. “I hope my company outbids everyone else.”
During the Army auction there was a live auction and a silent auction. Those who participated in the auctions signed up at the front door to receive an auction number. Led by an announcer, the live auction rallied participants to bid against one another. The silent auction took place soon after the live auction ended. The bidders wrote down their bids, periodically checking back in to see if they may have been outbid by another. This allowed them a chance to raise their bid on the item.
“I came here for the auction because it’s for a good reason,” Snider said. “I bid on a Monster basket and ended up donating $150, but it’s for a good reason. And, I’m a big Monster fan.”
More than 20 items were bid on by more than 50 registered bidders at the live auction. Some of those items included an empty, full size Jack Daniels barrel, a large colorful photo of a Sea Turtle framed in wood, an Ohio State collection for sports fans, a Mary Kay basket for the ladies, Xbox Items, Monster apparel, conch shells and much more.
“If I can [attend the Army Birthday Celebration], I will,” Snider said. “If I can’t, at least I helped reduce the cost for some of the people that want to go.”
If you were a bit shy of the bid price, worry not, the auction allowed winners a reasonable timeframe to pay for and pick up any items which may have caught their attention.
The Army Birthday Celebration Committee has alternately raised funds by bagging at the NEX for tips, selling shirts and hosting bake sales.
“The Army Birthday Celebration is also important to show the community who we are,” Douglas said. “The community may not be fully exposed to the Army as a branch here, as it is a Naval Station, so we can really show them and allow them [the chance] to celebrate [our service with us].”
| Date Taken: | 04.30.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 06.24.2015 10:15 |
| Story ID: | 167924 |
| Location: | GUANTANAMO BAY, CU |
| Web Views: | 37 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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