Auction concludes with a total close to the record set in 2025
The Hopkinsville Rotary Club’s “Spirit of ’76” Auction raised $178,738 on its final night Saturday, mainly through Hour and Goat club donations of $123,405, pushing the auction close to its record-setting fundraiser a year ago.
At the end of the night, the total for the week was $618,428, auction chairman Brett Pritchett announced. That was just shy of the 2025 auction that raised $634,383.
This year’s event raised more money in two categories — the Hour and Goat clubs, and in concessions through the Rotary Diner and Sweet Shoppe — compared to last year. But the main auction was down by approximately $20,000 compared to 2025.
As the outgoing auction chair, Pritchett will next serve as the club president. The 2027 auction chair will be Whitney Stewart.
Grants presented on the last night were:
- Christian County Public Schools Education Foundation — $50,000, the first installment in a $500,000 grant to be funded over 10 years to help schools “enhance their academic, athletic, arts and co-curricular opportunities.” It was the largest grant given this year.
- Hopkinsville Family YMCA — $10,000 for the “Y on the Fly: Feeding, Fitness and STEM for Kids” program. It will “focus on neighborhoods in and around Hopkinsville that experience high levels of economic hardship and limited access to youth programs.”
Read below for additional reporting on the auction’s day-by-day progress.
After Friday’s boost with catfish dinner, auction heads into final night
A crowd hungry for fried catfish formed a long line Friday evening at the Memorial Building, snaking out the front door and producing a nice boost for the Hopkinsville Rotary Club’s “Spirit of ’76” Auction.
It was the biggest day so far for the Rotary Diner and Sweet Shoppe, netting $10,464, auction chairman Brett Pritchett reported. Saturday will offer another popular dinner special, ribeye steak sandwiches.
Along with $21,409 from the main auction and $112,680 in Hour and Goat club donations, Friday’s effort pushed the week’s total to $439,689.
The auction raises money for college scholarships and community projects.
Heading into the auction’s final day Saturday, Rotarians will need to raise roughly $194,695 to reach last year’s mark of $634,383. The 2024 auction pulled in $560,074.
Rotarians presented two grants Friday evening. Those are:
Hopkinsville-Christian County Youth League — $10,000 “to help with player safety and overall facility usage quality through field lighting improvements at Ruff Park.”
Hoptown Hoppers — $7,500 “to expand summer baseball camps for youth into a second week with a reduced price to make the camp more affordable for more young players.”
Here’s how community members can get involved:
Bake
The club needs donated desserts for its Sweet Shoppe. These can be dropped off after 10 a.m. at the Memorial Building. Rotarian Andrew Wilson is sampling the desserts, and on Saturday he will name his favorite and make an Hour Club donation in the baker’s honor.
Follow
- Live: Memorial Building, 1202 S. Virginia St.
- Radio: WHOP 98.7 FM
- Online: Hopkinsville Rotary Facebook page or on the club’s YouTube channel
- TV: Spectrum channel 376
Support
- Auction bids: Call 270-885-7500
- Hour Club donations: 270-886-3034
Dine
- Supper served 5-8 p.m. all week
- Menu: Rotary Diner
After 4 nights, auction tally stands at $295,131
Heading into the final two days of the Hopkinsville Rotary Club’s “Spirit of ’76” Auction, the group had raised $295,131, which includes roughly $49,000 from Thursday’s auction.
The auction’s fourth night tally included $17,120 in the main auction, $7,677 from the diner and $24,375 in Hour and Goat club donations.
There is not an official goal for this year’s auction, but it comes on the heels of record-setting campaigns — $560,074 in 2024 and $634,383 in 2025.
Rotarian awarded three grants Thursday evening. Those are:
- Focus 21st Century — $2,500 to support “enrichment sessions for middle school students focused on leadership development, life skills training, community service and academic support.”
- Christian County 4-H — $5,000 to “help offset the cost for children to attend summer camps, conferences and leadership programs.”
- Jeffers Bend Environmental Center — $20,000 “to purchase supplies to support youth programming focused on planting, growing and harvesting fresh vegetables.” A portion of the grant will also go toward installation of new playground equipment.
Friday is the last day to get lunch in the Rotary Diner. The dinner special Friday is fried catfish.
Auction reaches halfway point, powers through brief electric outage
The Hopkinsville Rotary Club’s “Spirit of ’76” Auction pulled in another large crowd Wednesday at the Memorial Building, where a power outage slowed the start of the things but didn’t derail the evening.
Auction chairman Brett Pritchett joked it was, “The night that the lights went out at the Rotary.”
He praised Hopkinsville Electric workers for responding quickly after a transformer blew outside the building early Wednesday evening.
“We are so thankful to HES and the crew that got the power back on, for all of the people who stayed with us for dinner and for the auction, and for our production team for extending their efforts until 10 p.m.,” Pritchett said in an email.
Cornerstone Information Systems also had a hand in the recovery and helped get the “technology back up and running after the power outage,” said Pritchett.
The main auction was originally scheduled to end at 9 p.m. Tacking an extra hour at the end kept things moving, and Rotarians auctioned off 103 items.
Pritchett said they raised $9,505 in the main auction, $7,479 in the diner and $28,150 in Hour and Goat club donations for a total of $45,134 on Rotary Auction’s third night. That topped the Wednesday total in 2025 by about $2,445.
The total after three nights now stands at $245,959.
Pritchett noted that Brent Gilkey, of Pennyrile Electric, stopped by to present a $1,500 donation from Brice Long’s Back2Back Foundation.
The auction began Monday and continues through late Saturday. Rotarians are awarding grants each evening to local groups. Wednesday’s announcements included:
- Pennyrile Children’s Advocacy Center — $5,000 to “strengthen community awareness of child safety, elevate the voices of children impacted by abuse, and enhance trauma-informed services for youth.”
- Boys & Girls Clubs of Hopkinsville-Christian County — $15,000 for the club’s “Academic Incentive program that helps club members achieve tangible rewards for their dedication toward academic achievement.”
- Sanctuary Inc. — $25,000 “to directly benefit children in the community by providing safe, trauma-informed spaces where they can play, learn, and participate in supportive programs for years to come.”
Schools contribute $40,780 on auction’s second night
The Hopkinsville Rotary Club’s “Spirit of ’76” Auction raised $74,479 on Tuesday, bringing the total to $200,824 after two nights. This puts the fundraiser down by about $7,000 compared to the effort following the second night in 2025.
Tuesday’s tally included $11,342 from the main auction, $7,286 from the diner and $55,850 in Hour and Goat club donations.
RELATED: Hopkinsville Rotary Auction, rooted in ‘Spirit of 76’
Education was the focus of activities Tuesday, and local schools reported their efforts to Rotarians.
Public and private schools held fundraisers leading up to the auction, and students raised $40,780, auction chairman Brett Pritchett reported. Heritage Christian Academy was the top donor with $7,000. Among public schools, the largest donation came from Christian County High School with $6,410.
Rotarians awarded two grants on Tuesday. Those are:
University Heights Academy — $10,000 to help purchase stage-quality microphones and sound equipment for music classes and drama performances for elementary, middle, and high school students.
Heritage Christian Academy — $10,000 to buy Chromebooks and a mobile Chromebook cart to use as a classroom resource for teachers and students.
Grants for educational and community projects will be presented each night during the auction. The total award will be $185,000.
The auction continue through Saturday at the Memorial Building. The main auction runs from 6 to 10 p.m. tonight, Thursday and Friday and from 6 p.m. until the last item is sold Saturday.
Opening night draws a crowd of supporters
A crowd of supporters packed the Memorial Building on Monday to watch the Hopkinsville Rotary Auction live and to have supper at the start of the weeklong push to raise money for college scholarships and community projects.
Rotarians raised $126,345 on opening night, auction chairman Brett Pritchett reported. The tally included $5,700 from the main auction, $3,107 from the diner and $117,538 from donations to the Hour and Goat clubs.
Monday’s total was down $3,808 from last year’s opening night — the biggest difference seen in the main auction, which brought in approximately $9,200 on the first night in 2025.
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The theme for this year’s auction is “Spirit of ’76.” It continues every evening at the Memorial Building.
Rotarians will be awarding grants to several community organizations every night during the auction. Three grants were presented on opening night. Those are:
- Pennyroyal Arts Council — $5,000 to help expand children’s summer workshop programs.
- Men2Be — $5,000 for the Tools in the Toolbox program that provides hands-on trade experience, career readiness training, financial literacy and entrepreneurship education.
- Christian County Literacy Council — $2,500 for the “Rolling Reader” mobile book trailer to take books and a love of reading out to youth in the community.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. Brown was a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era, where she worked for 30 years. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board past president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition. She serves on the Hopkinsville History Foundation's board.
