When students left school after their first semester exams in December, they did not expect to return to a flooded gymnasium and commons area. Due to a pipe burst that occurred over the school’s winter break in January, the St. Joseph’s Academy gymnasium was unavailable for various school-sponsored events throughout the past months, including this year’s auction. With a little over a month left until the event, the auction committee began exploring possible venues before ultimately settling on the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Clayton. Auction Manager, Mrs. Gina Hayes, led this decision-making process. 

“Moving An Evening with the Angels to The Ritz-Carlton was a fortuitous occurrence. We were nearing capacity in the gym when the decision to relocate was forced upon us by the immediate need to tear out the gym floor,” Mrs. Hayes said. One positive aspect of the relocation was the additional space the new venue provided. 

“The ballroom at the Ritz allowed for an additional 100 attendees, enhancing the excitement of the evening. It was the ideal venue to enjoy a grand celebration and mark our fifty-year milestone of the St. Joseph’s Academy auction,” Mrs. Hayes said. 

Due to the additional space the ballroom provided, the school was able to host 667 attendees on-site at the event, as well as another 27 participants as mobile bidders. In order to support this large crowd, the auction committee enlisted the help of student volunteers. One such volunteer was Junior Ellie Wenberg.

“During the auction, I worked at the Premier table. Seeing the whole SJA community come together for the event was amazing. The whole room was filled with laughter and smiles,” Ellie said. The Premier table, which mainly featured jewelry, was one of many silent auction tables. Others featured designer handbags, signed sports memorabilia, and spirit wear items. Additionally, the event presented 22 live auction items which included everything from a front-row seat at graduation to an all-expenses paid trip to Disney World. 

Together, these items, along with the $118, 275 raised from the student raffle, raised over $1.1 million, breaking last year’s record of just over $1 million. Mrs. Hayes, along with the rest of the auction committee, look forward to another record-breaking auction next winter, back in the event’s original venue: the St. Joseph’s Academy gymnasium.