Konosioni Honor Society held its annual auction Saturday night at the Palace Theater to raise money for local non-profit organizations. Both senior and rising senior members of Konosioni were involved in planning the event, which is estimated to have raised nearly $10,000.

Local non-profit organizations can submit applications to the Konosioni Honor Society for grants that will be sourced from the auction in the Fall. Konosioni members from the Class of 2015 will work to allocate the funds next year according to their chosen topic of the year. This year, the Class of 2014 determined the topic of the year to be family health.

According to Relations Director for Konosioni senior Marilyn Hernandez-Stopp, the first part of the event was a silent block during which attendees were encouraged to converse, observe and make bids on pieces. Next, an auctioneer led a traditional live auction during which he presented some of the largest items such as Major League Baseball tickets and vacation stays. The next portion of the event was a silent auction, followed by an additional live auction.

“Most of the audience members [were] students, faculty members and members of the Board of Trustees and Alumni Council. Konosioni is working diligently to encourage more members of the community to attend, as it is a community-centric event. We hope to promote the auction as a space for all (kids, local families, business, etc) to attend in the future,” Hernandez-Stopp said.

Vice-President of Konosioni senior Marvin Vilma explained that since the annual auction is one of the honor society’s largest events, members have been working to organize and plan for months in advance. In acquiring items to be auctioned, members utilize various networks such as the Parents Steering Committee, Presidents Club, local businesses faculty and administrators.

According to Hernandez-Stopp, items at the event included gift baskets donated by local businesses, autographed sports memorabilia, tickets to college basketball games, tickets to MLB games, vacation stays, jewelry, artwork and articles of clothing like scarves and handbags.

In terms of the auction’s timing, Konosioni members usually try to organize the event during the return of the Alumni Council and the Board of Trustees. Hernandez-Stopp explains that the event’s timing during Entrepreneur’s Weekend likely improved attendance and funding.

President of Konosioni Honor Society senior Micky Silverman said that he and the Honor Society collaborate with the Center for Student Leadership and Involvement as well as faculty members such as to Denise Upton, Michael Maningas and Tim Mansfield. 

Vilma that the event is both about auctioning items and thereby raising money for local non-profits as well as engaging with the community.

“[The event] serves as a time to bring together all of those who call Hamilton their home: students, faculty and staff affiliated with Colgate, Colgate Alumni and Hamilton residents. Furthermore, they all come together for the purpose of donating to a cause that will then have a direct impact on the upstate New York area,” Silverman said.