ASHLEY STEWART
Owatonna People's Press reporter covering Steele County, Blooming Prairie and Medford government as well as health, transportation and community happenings. University of St. Thomas graduate.
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April 19, 2016Night of Knights Auction garners record $240K for St. Mary's School
Owatonna area residents browse through more than 300 silent auction baskets in the St. Mary’s cafeteria Saturday evening ahead of the live auction. The auctions, known as Night of Knights Auction, raised more than $240,000. (Ashley Stewart/People’s Press)
Saturday evening was special for St. Mary’s School.
“I’m almost speechless,” said Jed DeWitz.
DeWitz and his wife, Shannon, co-chaired the 30th annual Night of Knights Auction that features silent and live auctions to raise money for the parochial school’s operations.
“It was just a blessing to be a part of it,” he said.
That’s because this year the community’s generosity toward St. Mary’s was record-breaking.
In fact, the evening raised more than $240,000 for the school — about $80,000 more than last year.
“It was a wonderful evening,” DeWitz said. “It was great to have everyone there to celebrate.”
It was also an emotional evening, too, he said, crediting the “Spirit of the Knight” give, which raises money for an additional school need in the middle of the live auction.
This year’s proceeds were raised for a new PA system and classroom technology, and in conjunction with the give, Federated Insurance agreed to donate $100,000 to St. Mary’s capital campaign, which funds its building repairs, if the auction raised that much during the “Spirit of the Knight.”
“That was certainly the highlight of the evening,” DeWitz said.
The give, which was jump-started with an anonymous $25,000 donation, raised $144,000 — more than half of the event’s total earnings.
“There was a lot of emotion,” DeWitz said in describing the tears that were shed by school staff and community members.
In addition to the more than $240,000 the event brought in between the 300-item silent auction and the live auction packages, St. Mary’s received its $100,000 matching donation from Federated Insurance and a $25,500 donation from the Owatonna Knights of Columbus for the capital campaign.
“It was a great year and it was a great thing to be a part of,” DeWitz said.
He said at least 600 people attended the Saturday’s event, which started at 4 p.m. with the silent auction in the St. Mary’s cafeteria and the live auction in the gymnasium.
“We had a very good crowd,” DeWitz added.
Diane LaVallie of Owatonna has attended the auction since the early 1990s when her children went to St. Mary’s.
“It has grown by leaps and bounds since then,” she said.
LaVallie said now her grandchildren attend the school, and it’s fun seeing people who went to school with her children each year.
“It’s a nice social event,” she said.
Tracy Ruiter, a parent of a current St. Mary’s student and two others, agreed.
“It’s wonderful to see how the community comes out to support the school,” she said.
Ruiter said she has two sons who attended St. Mary’s from kindergarten to eighth grade who are now at the high school and a son who is a fifth-grader at St. Mary’s currently.
“I’m here to support the school because of them,” she said.
Children are also what brought Phil and Katie Clubb to the auction Saturday evening.
“This whole day is cool in Owatonna,” Phil Clubb said. “The spirit of giving really shows through.”
The Night of Knights Auction capped off a three-event day in Owatonna that raises money for youth-related organizations, including Young Life and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Southern Minnesota.
“It’s fantastic that Owatonna comes out and supports all three organizations,” LaVallie said. “It shows how great of a community it is, and I’m happy to be a part of it.”
Reach reporter Ashley Stewart at 444-2378 or follow her on Twitter.com @OPPashley