HI: I have a question about silent auctions. At our school last year, there were several wealthy parents who donated things like "a week at my family's condo in Vail for skiing" and "two weeks at our house in Nantucket." I donated a basket of freshly baked muffins because that's what my family could afford. But I worry about the fact that there were no limits placed on "donations" -- at what point do donations to the school become bribes. (One guy in construction recently donated 7000 dollars worth of patio furniture so the teachers could eat lunch in the courtyard. Nicest patio furniture I ever saw! And this is a public school!) And quite frankly, I thought it was all just a bit tacky -- the big donations and the oohing and aahing. It made lots of us really uncomfortable. Am I being overly sensitive because we're poor, or is this usually regulated in some way? Just wondering.
what's a tricky tray?
BTW, we are challenged to find a new name for our "chinese auction" as it is said to be a demeaning term by some of our students and families.
We usually have $750-$1000 for our chinese auction line item on our budget. We don't reimburse for things like printer toner on volunteers personal computers but do reimburse stamps, paper, envelopes, ribbons, tablecloths, paper goods and any food that needs purchasing.
