Annual Auction


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On Saturday, February 9, 2019, the Academy held its 32nd Annual Auction, “Unmask the Possibilities: The Red and Black Masquerade Ball,” at the Allegheny Country Club.

We would like to thank the members of our Auction committee – Aisha Gunter, Ngozi Maduka-Okorafor, Jenna Stevenson, and Jayme Thompson – for their creativity and generosity of time, treasure, and talent. We would also like to thank our sponsors for their dedication.

With more than 150 people in attendance, the browsing and bidding began during the Silent Auction where a quartet from the Bachelor Boys Band played some lively tunes. The ballroom was decorated with lavish, white feather bouquets, beautiful fresh red flowers, and candlelight for guests to enjoy while they were seated for dinner. During dinner, Head of School Kolia O’Connor opened the Live Auction festivities with the importance of why giving to Sewickley Academy is so crucial and needed each year. Kolia then introduced our new auctioneer, Quig Bruning from Sotheby’s (related by marriage to the Thompson family), who proceeded to capture the audience’s attention with his quick wit and professional style while helping to raise an incredible $157,200 during the Live Auction.

The Fund-A-Need portion of the Auction raised a total of $97,900. Breakthrough Pittsburgh received $69,150 in donations, professional development received $18,450, and the Lower School science lab metamorphosis into a 21st century learning lab received $10,300.

The Black and Gold Raffle winners, which included tickets to home games of Pittsburgh’s sports teams, were Marne and Brad Busatto ’88; the Bourbon raffle grand prize winners were Rodney and Kristen Smith; and the 50/50 raffle winners were Kate (Poppenberg ’82) and Paul Pigman, who generously donated their portion of the winnings back to the school. Thank you, Kate and Paul! The evening concluded with upbeat, live music from the Bachelor Boys Band as guests danced the night away.

The evening was wonderful from start to finish, and we could not have done it without the dedication and support of our sponsors, advertisers, donors, parent underwriters, and businesses. With their help, this year’s Auction was a huge success, grossing over $257,000!

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