Mike W. Bryant
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Nov 21/01) - Where else could you go to buy a pair of Joe Handley's socks? Or perhaps a kitchen sing-along with George Tuccaro and John Tees is what you're after.

Celebrity auctioneer Tony Whitford was driving the prices hard at the Explorer Hotel last Saturday. A total of $30,000 was raised for the NWT Council of Persons with Disabilities at the 22nd Annual Celebrity Auction. - Mike W. Bryant/NNSL photo

The 22nd annual Celebrity Auction had a little bit of everything for the ardent buyer at the Explorer Hotel Saturday night, and bought they did.

Just ask Range Lake MLA Sandy Lee. She paid $525 for a handmade, twin-sized quilt, donated by Barb Round.

Yet, as always, it was not mere reckless consumerism that had buyers bidding wildly on the auction floor. Nor was it the quantity of prominent faces in the crowd.

Every year the auction raises thousands dollars for the NWT Council of Persons with Disabilities.

"Last year we netted $40,000," said council executive director Aggie Brockman.

"That was our best year ever." The event didn't raise quite as much this year -- total proceeds rang in at $30,000 -- but as long as there were people willing to pay $525 for a quilt and a good cause, or $230 for a pair of lamb's wool socks, it still made for a pretty good haul.

Of course, one should not forget the persuasiveness of the auctioneers themselves.

The tandem of Gerry Le Prieur and legislative assembly Speaker Tony Whitford drove a hard bargain all night long, and few walked away without being a little lighter in the pocket book.

"There's different ways of auctioning," said Whitford, laughing.

Whitford has been involved with the charity event for 15 years and has served as auctioneer for 10 of them.

"If you're auctioning off cattle, that's one thing, but it's a little different when you're auctioning off fine art.

It's a little bit slower, but there's all sorts of things here tonight, so I imagine it (the speed of the pitch) will be in between."

If buyers felt the live auction was a little too steep for the blood, there was always the silent auction where at least the heat of outbidding one another was a little more subdued.

There were pies and fitness club memberships, fleeces and hunting lessons. All in all, more than a few ways to help raise some money.

And if someone was feeling really busted, but still wanted to help out with a few bucks, there was the ice fishing pond. The object of this game was to lift a wooden fish from a barrel -- $4 for one, $10 for three -- and correspond it to the matching prize.