ST. REGIS – People from all over Mineral County and beyond gathered in the St. Regis Community Center Thursday evening for the annual Mineral County Friends of the National Rifle Association fundraiser banquet.

People from all walks of life attended and gathered to raise money and celebrate the fellowship of a shared passion.

The evening, their main event of the year, featured live and silent auctions, drawings, games, a raffle and dinner with a no-host bar. According to Kenn Brown, the committee chair of Mineral County, the money raised will go to support the Mineral County 4H pellet rifle shooters, among other local and national shooting sports as well as other educational and safety programs. The bulk of the money will be going to schools, Brown says. According to Brown, the fundraiser usually nets between $12,000 and $14,000 annually.

“About half the money stays right here in Mineral County,” said Joe Crismore, the Montana field representative for the NRA.

According to Brown, about half of the auctioned items were donated by businesses, private parties or purchased locally. Other auction items were purchased from a package provided by the national FNRA organization. While the fundraiser dinner is their main event each year, FNRA also promotes and sells raffle tickets at car shows, state and county fairs and other community events.

The items auctioned included household items, like a NRA waffle iron and a pet feeding station, flag displays, art including a Browning patent plaque and a late-1800’s Gatling Gun bullet and casing. Included was also a special kid’s auction including a Red Rider BB gun and a bicycle.

According to their website, since their creation in 1992 FNRA has held over 15,000 events and raised over $200 million for the NRA. While the main goal is fundraising, according to their website FNRA is also about having fun and simple fellowship.

“We hope everyone has a good time,” said Brown. “We do this for the community.”