By KATHY PAULSEN
Staff Writer
A new year has arrived and with it comes another Geneva Cancer Auction.
Plans are being made for the 33rd annual event, set for the weekends of Jan. 13-14 and Jan. 20-21. The auction starts on Friday night at 7 and resumes Saturday afternoon at 2, each weekend.
The auction, which remains serious business, is a popular event to attend, with people coming from far and wide for fun, laughter and camaraderie while they help fight for a cure.
There are those who have donated, attended or worked for a great number of years. They are ready to do it again this year, doing what they can to help with this very worthwhile cause.
Many people donate items for the auction in memory or in honor of loved ones.
If you have never attended a Geneva Cancer Auction, you are missing something special. How many little towns have the ability to attract so many people? Once they attend, people tend to return.
Any and all donations are accepted. Many area businesses and individuals donate a wide variety of items including sports items, caps, sweatshirts, T-shirts, fishing poles, etc. They donate gift certificates, pictures, candles, items for the home and farm, pet food, birdhouses and bird seed. The auction always has a number of handcrafted items: quilts, blankets, cross stitch, crewel items, and hand-painted items. There are a few stuffed animals, dolls and doll clothes, and a few games.
And we can’t forget the food items, which include a collection from our local meat markets, some sliced and ready to enjoy, as well as pounds of potatoes and onions. The auction always has its share of pizzas, sub sandwiches, and plates of deviled eggs, along with home baked breads and rolls that are usually paired with that famous Hope butter that Victor Mrotz provides by the case each year. There is usually a collection of homemade donuts, cookies, bars, pies or home canned items.
Vi Blazek brought pickles to the first auction in Geneva and continued the tradition for a great number of years. She also brought hot pickled peppers because, she said, “They are good for you.” Sadly, she lost her battle with cancer, but the memory of her donations and the amount of money she helped raised lingers on.
Vi’s daughter, Sue, has taken over where her mother left off and plants cucumbers each summer and traditionally continues to donate quarts and quarts of those famous pickles every year in her mother’s memory.
For years, there has been a bouquet of yellow roses given by a lady who has survived cancer. Not only do they honor her, but also it serves as a reminder that the money raised during events like the Geneva Cancer Auction has helped in the fight against cancer. Others have donated their “Locks of Love.”
If you would like to donate to this very worthwhile cause, drop your items at Geneva Bar & Grill. They will be marked with your name and put up for bid.
Hank and Judy Thompson owned Geneva Liquor from 1984-1999. They were visiting with Whitey and LaJune Hagen and the subject of what they could do to help raise funds for cancer research came up. They discussed different ideas, and it was decided they would start holding a cancer fundraising auction in Geneva, and they, along with the help of others, held the first Geneva Cancer Auction in 1984.
The following year Judy decided to prepare some wild game her boys had in their freezer and brought it to the liquor store in a crock pot and said that whatever anybody wanted to donate, she would donate it to the Geneva Cancer Auction. Needless to say, the tradition has continued. The Wild Game Feed continues to be held in December each year and people come from far and wide to support it.
Though the bar and grill has changed hands over the years, it still provides a hub for the people of our area. The auction has been as an inspiration for other events. DeeAnn Randall organizes a motorcycle run and pool tournament, and a golf tournament is held.
Raffle tickets are available for the 2017 Geneva Cancer Auction, which includes a 48” television and five cash prizes.