During the silent auction, women in red aprons buzzed around the room, socializing with bidders. Many of the items up for sale were billed as holiday and seasonal gifts.
One young shopper, Katie Barr, placed bids with her mother Ashear, a member of BPW. The pair was interested in a nativity set, a stuffed polar bear and a chocolate gift basket. Although they wanted all the items, Katie was particularly adamant about winning the nativity set, which she planned to set up in her room.
"It's cute and I really like it," she said.
Items ranging from a red plastic toy car to a certificate for a 30-minute massage were all donated by the business communities of State College, Bellefonte and Boalsburg.
The table labeled "Celebrity Donations" attracted a lot of attention; it included autographed photographs of Terry Bradshaw, Richard Gere, Chuck Noll, Alec Baldwin and Joe Paterno.
Many Penn State items were available at the auction, including a Penn State sweatshirt, a Penn State gift basket, and basketballs and volleyballs autographed by their respective Penn State teams.
Mary Dunkel, co-chair of the event and board member of the Women's Resource Center, was pleased with the outcome of the event.
"For as cold as it is, I'm delighted with the people who are coming through," Dunkel said.
After the bells were rung to end bidding, attention turned to the live auction, where attendees were presented with the opportunity to buy three vacation packages and a paper collage painting donated and created by local artist and therapist Anne Kenyon.
In addition to the trips bought by Joann and Harry Falk, one bidder bought a weekend for two in Washington, D.C., at the Loewes L'Enfant Plaza Hotel for $350.
Kenyon's painting sold for $200.
This year's event will mark the sixth annual auction of this sort hosted by BPW and the Women's Resource Center, Dunkel said. After last year's donation of $7,800, organizers expected to generate a sizable amount of money last night.
