MOSES LAKE — The theme for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Columbia Basin was “Shine Bright for the Kids,” and the community did exactly that, to an estimated tune of about $260,000. 

“We always tie our themes to our club kids,” said Executive Director Kim Pope. “Our club kids have shared their wishes and dreams, and all the things that happen, happen because of you. You’re the ones who make their wishes and dreams come true.” 

The attendees certainly shone bright, with sparkles and sequins galore. The event took place at the ATEC Building at Big Bend Community College with a prime rib dinner, raffles and silent and live auctions. Dinner was catered by Crazylady Kitchen and Catering of Quincy, and the auction was conducted by Chuck Yarbro Auctioneers.   

One of the traditional high points of the auction is the Diamond Draw, a raffle in which $100 buys the participant a chance to win a pair of three-carat earrings from Miller’s Fine Jewelers. The drawing selects five finalists, who are each given a champagne glass with a pair of earrings. Four of the pairs are cubic zirconium; the fifth is genuine diamonds. Emma Claire Tatum won the earrings this year. 

KXLY news anchor and Moses Lake native Derek Deis served as MC, reprising the role from last year. 

“I've done a few … auctions over the years,” Deis said. “It's not about how many people you have in the room, it's who you have in the room. And this event last year knocked my socks off with the support that we were able to generate for our kids, and looking around and seeing some of the familiar faces that I know here, I know that we're going to crush it here again tonight.” 

The money goes to fund operations at the Boys & Girls Club’s McGraw Clubhouse, as well as smaller clubhouses at elementary schools and a teen center at Frontier Middle School. The club provides a safe place for about 1,500 children to go after school and all day during the summer, as well as healthy meals. The cost to each child is $15 per month, which is only a fraction of what the club actually spends, Pope said. In the summer, the club has a daily rate for the children, and perhaps as many as half of them can’t afford even that, Pope said, so the club sponsors them. The annual auction is how that’s done.

“If we don't have a great auction, then we really struggle with those operating expenses that people never see,” Pope said. “How are we going to keep the lights on? How are we going to pay our water bill? How are we going to make sure our furnace is running? All of those things are never covered by a grant.” 

The club delivers meals to children during the summer when they don’t get fed at school, and that program alone served 73% more meals this year than last, Pope said.  

“The first 15 days of summer, we served almost 6,000 meals, breakfast, lunch and afternoon snack,” she said. 

The auction raised a little bit less than last year, Pope said, but she still counted it a success given the uncertainty of the economy. 

“Everybody in every industry is feeling that crunch,” Pope said. “If a farmer does well, then he's going to go and buy a new tractor, and then the people that sell tractors are going to go buy a new car, and then the people that sell a car are going to go buy a piece of jewelry. It’s this trickle-down effect all through the economy when one portion suffers.” 

Nevertheless, auctioneer Chuck Yarbro Jr. reminded the crowd, money spent on children comes back in ways that don’t necessarily show up on the balance sheet. 

“You can spend money all day long, but when you're investing in kids, you're investing your future,” auctioneer Chuck Yarbro Jr. told the crowd. “It’s going to pay dividends in our country, ladies and gentlemen, in our community, our town, our county, our state, our region and our country. The needs are growing, so let’s meet them here tonight.” 

    From left: Jessica Peña, Trino Peña and Kelly Price catch up at the Boys & Girls Club annual auction Saturday. The theme for the evening was “Shine Bright for the Kids,” and many attendees dressed in their glitteriest finery.
  

    Corrisa Conner of Moses Lake looks over silent auction items at the Boys & Girls Club auction Saturday.
  

    Boys & Girls Clubs of the Columbia Basin Executive Director Kim Pope speaks at the auction Saturday, backed by the evening’s master of ceremonies, KXLY news anchor and Moses Lake native Derek Deis.
  

    Group14 Plant Manager Don Kersey of Moses Lake presides over the wine table at the Boys & Girls club auction Saturday.
  

    Dinner at the Boys & Girls Club banquet and auction was catered by Crazylady Catering and Kitchen of Quincy. This is the first time Crazylady has catered the event, said Club Executive Director Kim Pope, and the meal received much positive feedback.