Annual fundraiser benefits St. Luke extended care

The Ronan Community Center was nearly filled with community members giving support to the St. Luke Community Healthcare Foundation Annual Dinner and Auction.

This year marked the return of the dinner which was not held in 2020 and 2021 due to Covid-19 precautions. During 20-21, the fundraiser continued via a virtual auction. That format was very popular so was continued this year as the in-person silent auction and live auction returned to the event. This year marked the 22nd year for the fundraiser.

Each year the funds raised at the fall fundraiser are used for a different facet of the St. Luke hospital. In 2021 the focus was upon maternal and child health. This year funds will go to support St. Luke’s extended care. Extended care was chosen in part because many community members have and will become residents of the facility. It becomes their home.

As CEO, Steve Todd, put it, “The residents don’t live in the facility; we work in their home.”

This year has been very tough for nursing homes-especially the smaller facilities in rural communities. Seven nursing homes in Montana have gone out of business this year. St. Luke is not in any danger of that happening largely due to the tremendous support from the community. The two premiere sponsors are Glacier Bank and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana with numerous additional signature, supporting, and heart of the valley supporters.

The event began with a cocktail hour where it was quite apparent that many of the attendees were friends and neighbors. People milled around not only checking on the items on which they were interested in bidding, but also engaging with each other—with old friends as well as new ones.

The mood was light and spiced with humor throughout the night.

The silent auction had numerous and varied items and packages including such things as artwork snowshoes, a huckleberry basket, a Pendleton blanket, garden supplies, fishing gear, a hand crafted bench, a cow hide rug or wall hanging and much, much more. No matter a person’s tastes or hobbies, there was something in the auction to pique their interest.

Several members of the Ronan High School junior class had volunteered to serve and they did a very professional job tempting everyone with hors d’oeuvres and later serving the prime rib dinner. The meal was outstanding — well worth the price of the ticket.

As the dinner completed and attendees again checked the bids on the silent auction items, the name of the badge ‘choice’ raffle was announced. Treasure Johnson’s name was drawn and she selected the Marbled Meat package from the live auction items. That package consisted of a selection of meat each month for a year plus a Marbled Meats cooler.

The silent auction was then concluded and shortly thereafter the live auction began. The first item sold was an 8X12 barn/shed. Other items included week-long stays at cabins, meat—both beef and pork packages, a stone top and a barn wood bar table and chairs, a kayak package, a teepee with poles, and a beautiful piece of artwork painted on a bison skull. The auctioneer kept the crowd very involved and bidders seemed to have a lot of fun out-bidding each other.

Applause and cheers for the eventual winner of each item entertained even the loser of the bid. The packages went for $800-$3,200.

After the auction, most people stayed around for a bit continuing their conversations before making their way to the exit. There they settled their tab for both the dinner and anything they had purchased. Those who missed out on winning any items had another chance to win as the on-line auction continued until Sunday at noon.