Saturday Night Fever: 2015 Charity Auction

Saturday, April 11, 2015 — by Bobby Paulus is a full-time MBA candidate (Class of 2015) with a focus on consumer goods marketing.

How is it that every year, the Carlson School MBA program is able to get the full time, part time, executive education, alumni, faculty, staff, and families into one room? And have a great time while raising money for a worthy nonprofit? While potential responses may include the food, drinks, entertainment, or catching up with old friends – it is due entirely to the annual Carlson 4 Community (C4C) MBA Charity Auction.

This year, on February 21st, Carlson put on its 10th annual MBA Charity Auction to benefit the Minnesota Chapter of the Paralyzed Veterans of America (MNPVA), a phenomenal organization. The PVA is a non-profit organization and was founded after World War II to support those veterans with a spinal cord injury during or after their service to ensure those affected receive appropriate medical care and legislative support so they can live their lives unconstrained. The MNPVA certainly made a great partner with Carlson 4 Community, in its mission to promote volunteerism and community involvement both at the school and in the greater Twin Cities area.

A well-deserved break during the set-up process for the Auction.

The planning process for the event actually began months before the event. Dozens of meetings were needed to secure sponsors and gifts. Work had to be put into a silent auction app, and a payment system for participants had to be established. And finally, the space had to be set-up, gifts had to be categorized and displayed, and there were signs to make.

But when everything was done, the actual auction was a great time! There was a silent auction, a live auction, games to play during the evening, as well as an impressive spread of food and drinks. The event was held at the TCF Bank Stadium DQ Club Room – a beautiful space within the stadium that looks like it belongs inside of a massive five-star hotel. Plenty of room for 500+ people and some intense live auction bidding!

Throughout the evening, current full time, part time, and executive education MBA students were able to spend time with alumni, faculty, and staff, as well as our guests from the MNPVA. The community component of the Carlson experience may be spoken about quite often, but it was exceedingly clear that night of how important that is to everyone who is a part of the program, regardless of role of student, teacher, staff, alumni, family, or friend. The event went well, and included a great introduction by the C4C President, Thuy Le, and a moving talk by MNPVA representatives about what their organization does and the research that they support, which helps paralyzed veterans use new wheelchair technology. The spirit of giving was also prevalent, demonstrated by the overall donation total of over $30,000 to MNPVA. Truly an agent for philanthropy and service in its community, the Carlson School of Management had a banner night with the MNPVA at the MBA Charity Auction. Thanks to everyone who participated!