Hopkinsville Rotarians got a fundraising boost Wednesday night from schools — not to mention a couple dozen apple dumplings — as they reached the halfway mark of the 72nd annual Rotary Action with $273,896 raised so far.
The schools, motivated by a chance to plant a whip cream pie in the face of Superintendent Chris Bentzel, raised roughly $47,000. That’s an increase of $18,000 from last year, the club announced. Bentzel took a pie from every school that increased their giving over last year. Students raise money with bake sales and special events.
Wednesday’s total also included $1,000 each for a dozen apple dumplings made by Glenda Noffsinger, whose grandson Cody Noffsinger is the local Rotary Club president this year.
The first batch went to Rotary District governor Gail Story, who outbid auction chairman Andrew Wilson. The second batch went to Brian Burkhead.
When the dumplings were delivered to the Memorial Building on Wednesday, Wilson decided they were too good to sell in the Sweet Shop.
“Let’s put them in the auction and see what happens,” he said.
The auction raises money for the Rotary Scholars program at Hopkinsville Community College and for other efforts supporting youth and community programs.
Most of the money comes from cash donations to the Hour and Goats Clubs. Hour Club donations are given in $179 increments, which is the cost of one credit hour of tuition at the community college. Smaller donations go to the Goat Club, an old tradition that stems from a year when a goat was auctioned off several times as bidders kept giving the animal back to the Rotary Club.
But the nightly auction at the Memorial Building provides the energy and entertainment for the week.
As of Wednesday, the auction total was $135,899 ahead of the mark set on Wednesday in 2021, which set a record with a finally tally of $397,832.
Rotarians are serving lunch today from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Boston butts, for $40, will be available starting around 10:30 a.m. Tonight’s special dinner, from 5 to 8 p.m., is smoked chicken.
Auction Info
- Where: Memorial Building, 1202 S. Virginia St.
- When: 6-9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 6-10 p.m. Friday and 6 p.m. until the last item is sold Saturday.
- Watch and Listen: On Hopkinsville Rotary’s website, on WHOP Radio 98.7 FM, or on Spectrum channel 376
- Bid: Call 270-885-7500
- Donate: On the club’s Hour and Goat Club site.
- Eat at the Diner: Lunch hours are 11 a.m.-1 p.m. through Friday; dinner is 5 to 8 p.m. through Saturday
- Special meals: Smoked chicken on Thursday, fish fry on Friday and ribeye sandwiches on Saturday.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. She spent 30 years as a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition.
