January 23, 2020
In the fall of 1995, after what has been described as “several years of debate,” the TDS Board of Trustees decided to hold an auction. Patty McClendon and Sharon Myers chaired the first event, titled “Champions at the Speedway,” which took place at Croasdaile Country Club. Generating a profit of $12,000 (which far surpassed the $5,000 goal), the first auction was hailed as a smashing success.
Now celebrating its 25th anniversary, the TDS Auction remains both a wonderful community event and, along with the Annual Fund, the primary fundraising mechanism for the school. This year, Alaina Pantoja, Casey DiRienzo, and their team of volunteers invite you to join us at Bay 7 on the American Tobacco Campus in Durham on Saturday, February 22nd at 6:30 PM for The Roaring Twenties. Click here to purchase your tickets! Please act now. As an extra incentive, the class with the highest percentage of tickets purchased by February 1st will earn an ice cream party.
Funds raised at the auction directly support the school’s operations this year. Specifically, auction proceeds allow us to attract and retain an outstanding faculty and staff; support athletics, technology and the arts; continue to upgrade our facilities; send teachers to local, regional, and national conferences for professional development; offer financial aid to many families; and much, much more.
In recent years, the Fund-A-Cause has become an integral component of the auction, with donors raising their paddles in support of a specific initiative. This year, I am thrilled to announce that Fund-A-Cause dollars will go toward the purchase of new playground equipment for all grades. As TDS continues to grow, we need additional equipment to accommodate the many bodies at recess! We are in the process of surveying your children to determine what is most popular; you’ll hear more about this as the event approaches.
The TDS Auction has generated many wonderful memories over the years. This will be my eighth Auction, as TDS was good enough to invite me and my family in February 2013, four months before we officially relocated to North Carolina. I sincerely thank all of you who have donated time and items thus far, and I encourage you to join us on February 22nd. Enjoy a delicious meal with friends, bid on a fabulous experience with your child’s teacher, and raise your paddle to help us expand our playspaces and create more opportunities for outdoor play. Click here to learn more. Sponsoring a teacher to attend the Auction is also a wonderful way to support the faculty and the school.
I hope to see you at Bay 7!
Doug Norry
Head of School
