Central students lead auction to benefit Osborne Campground project
Central students Jordan Everitt (auctioneer) and Nate Shirbroun hosted a benefit auction for the Osborne Campground project as part of their independent ag class. The pair raised over $4,100.
By Willis Patenaude, Times-Register
In another project driven by Central students and originating in the minds of Jordan Everitt and Nate Shirbroun, the pair set out to find a way to help the community by holding a benefit auction. It’s something Everitt has experience in, and he’s seen how the personal efforts of those auctions have gone on to create a positive impact in the community.
The auction effort would be for Clayton County Conservation and ongoing fundraising efforts for the Osborne Campground. The decision was made after Everitt kept hearing people talk about “how they miss having a campground at Osborne.”
The two wasted no time in hitting the ground running, going to local businesses and asking for donations. They even got a hold of the local radio station to do a broadcast about the event and advertised details on social media. The event would be held at the Edgewood Event Center and would be catered, though finding a caterer during the holiday season proved difficult. It was overcome due to Everitt’s persistence in calling just about every local caterer in the area until locating one that could do the event.
After collecting donations, Everitt and Shirbroun brought the items to the auction site and set them up on tables in preparation for the live bidding auction, which attracted over 35 people.
The students had a modest goal of raising around $2,500, but Everitt said that number was easily surpassed. The duo ended up raising over $4,100 for the campground project.
The event gave Everitt the opportunity to work on his side passion of being an auctioneer, something he went to school for last summer. “I also wanted the community to get back what they have had in the past,” he added.
As for what else the students learned, Everitt said, “I learned people appreciate helping make a difference in our community by donating an item to help a cause or forwarding the word of one of the events like ours that’s happening. I feel that this class shows that the Central students care about bettering our community so everyone can feel welcome and have the resources they need in order to have a better life.”
