Silent auction offers shopping for a good cause

For more than a quarter century, the silent auction benefiting the Texas Newspaper Foundation has brought a unique shopping experience to the TPA Convention and Trade Show. This year’s auction during the June 18-20 convention at the Hyatt Regency DFW Hotel will be no exception, and members are encouraged to bring items for sale and participate in the bidding.

The foundation was established in 1974 and has now benefited newspapers and Texas journalists for more than five decades. The silent auction was established at the 2000 convention as a regular fundraising event. The first auction in 2000 raised $6,157.93 for what was then called the Texas Community Newspaper Project to provide educational programs for new and mid-career journalists.

Many of these programs were hosted by journalism departments at Texas colleges, particularly Texas Christian University. The workshops and seminars sponsored by the foundation include those held since 2009 at the Texas Center for Community Journalism, first at TCU and now at Tarleton State University.

TCCJ’s free workshops and training opportunities are supported by funds raised through the annual silent auction and the Robert Burns Memorial Golf Tournament, as well as regional press association fund raising events. 

Members are encouraged to donate items for the auction to represent their local communities and businesses.

Items of all kinds have made past auctions successful, including collectibles and home décor items; sports paraphernalia and memorabilia; regional culinary treats and local agricultural products such as Texas-grown olive oil, wine and honey; travel experiences; books; newspaper-themed fashion accessories; wall art, and a wide variety of other interesting and just plain fun items.

This year’s items will be on display and ready for bidding when the trade show kicks off with a reception starting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday adjacent to vendor booths representing dozens of companies, organizations and universities serving the newspaper industry. Auction items will remain on display in the exhibition hall Friday morning from 7:30 to 11 a.m. Bidding closes at 11:15 a.m., when winners will pay for and collect their items.

For more information and to donate, contact Sue Brown, sbrown@texaspress.com, or Mike Hodges, mhodges@texaspress.com.