20th Anniversary of Bob McCarthy’s Irish Christmas Draws Record Crowd and Record Support
A sold-out crowd, spirited auctions, and heartfelt generosity made this milestone fundraiser one of the most successful in its 20-year history.
The 20th anniversary of Bob McCarthy’s Irish Christmas held last Friday night at EBC was one of the best ever, with the largest crowd of over 250. Most were there to mingle and celebrate the annual fundraiser with great live entertainment and some great bargains. Asa Moss provided a bagpipe introduction march yielding to a toast to Bob. A newly formed dance class from Ellicottville Central School started by Meghan Emborsky saw 7 kids cheered by the crowd. Marking the loss of Ellicottville’s Town Father, John D. Northrup that same day, the crowd was solemn but knew that John would want to make sure the day was celebrated.
The feature of the evening, the Fabulous Live Pie Auction hosted by Brooks LeFeber of brookslefeberauctions.com, kicked off, and at a frantic pace, the bids started to soar.
Once again, bids for four days at Anna Maria Island Condo donated by Sally and Mike Nickolson brought the highest amount of $1,700 from Michelle & Mike Young, while a great handcrafted Cherry & Black Walnut Captain’s Chest created by Ed Frederickson saw frantic bidding, finally purchased by Barry & Cindy Goodin. A beautiful Christmas Stocking stand from Sam Sheehy of the Winery of Ellicottville was a hit with the grandparents. All of us want to be invited to dinner at the Goodin’s for a Surf & Turf dinner, as 30lbs of crab legs & Palmer Foods meat package will surely be enjoyed. Nate Dahlman stole the winter ski package courtesy of Holiday Valley with Katy’s Chocolate Peppermint cake, while the Bradishs took home a unique Simon Griffis sculpture with Pat Kerl’s sought-after cast-iron apple pie. Some lucky bidders took home some of Bob’s original creations, with a very unusual 3-story birdhouse going to a very excited Erin Cornelius, while a Rosignol snowboard from Mud, Sweat n’ Gears was sought by many. Nancy Hammond may have gotten the steal of the night, purchasing an original acrylic by South African artist Clarbelle VanNiekerk, donated by Jeanine Zimmer. Fittingly closing out the auction was John Burrell’s “Top Flight” hand crafted limited edition knife, bought by Kyle Luther.
This year a more extensive silent auction saw some great bargains for those early Christmas shoppers, with Holiday Valley golf & summer fun package and HoliMont lift tickets attracting many bids. A Buffalo Trace Bourbon basket almost ended in a wrestling match between bidders, with Sean Cornelius winning at the bell. Another bourbon basket & Irish Gin basket - both donated by Cynthia Gibbons & Mike Kay - drew the attention of many. A very interesting retro set of skis from the City Garage had many asking where they could be purchased.
Many commented on the great Irish basket raffle with over 30 baskets of beautiful gifts. This raffle was organized by Brooke Szpaicher, Mila Clauss, and Niki Klein and allowed many to take home something special.
This year’s event could not have happened without our host, the Ellicottville Brewing Company, who again went above and beyond to support Bob’s night! They are so generous to the Foundation, donating the proceeds from special beer sales to the fund. Brew Master Dan Minner had many great beers on tap to the delight of many in the crowd. The Winery of Ellicottville provided the great red and white wine with all proceeds going to the Foundation. Laura Kohler, Beth Harvey, and Hanna Riter’s expertise made staging this party easy and fun for the committee, and as always were the perfect partners. EBC’s spacious Beer Hall and their friendly staff - Topper, Grace Meredith, Katelyn, and volunteers Ryan and Olivia - made for a great evening.
It was obvious that many of our benefactors opened up their hearts and wallets to support The Bob McCarthy Foundation’s holiday programs - Santa’s Workshop, Shop with a Cop, the Santa Sheriff program - along with the many other year-round projects. The auction was the best ever financially, providing the bulk of the yearly foundation’s budget. As always, a number of generous people chose to donate directly to the Foundation. As these donations normally continue through the end of the year, we anticipate surpassing previous years' highs by over 15% which is truly amazing.
DesignPerks - that is Brenda Perks and Meaghan Lucarelli - did a great job on the artwork and promotional material. Heather Sullivan of Heather J Sullivan Consulting worked her magic with the website and Facebook. Brooks LeFeber (brookslafeberauctions.com) hosting the auction, as always, made it both entertaining and fun with a local flair.
As is always the case, our great local publications, EllicottvilleNOW, The Villager, and the Olean Times Herald provided promotion of the event both online and in print, helping us greatly. We greatly appreciate Barb Pump of the Chamber of Commerce, who featured the event in their online promotional material.
A special thanks to The Banq, Dina’s, EBC, Katy’s, Madigans, The Silver Fox, Villaggio, and Ellicottville Syrup Co. who brought “A Taste of Ireland” to a new culinary level for the event. The food was fabulous and sold out quickly. Great appreciation to Ellicottville’s home bakers (too many to thank), whose special desserts are done as a tribute to their friend Bob and this tradition. We also thank the many local businesses that supported the live and silent auctions and the basket raffle with their generous gifts. Many friends of Bob McCarthy helped make Friday night a success - you know who you are and we thank you all.
When asked how this started, McCarthy would answer, “It started with a little magic.” To be sure, the magic came in the form of Ellicottville’s residents, both permanent and part-timers who bid or donated to the cause. The real magic is that this event is helping a number of local families have a better Christmas through Santa’s Workshop and the Santa Sheriff program.
Bob, we all miss you, but we will continue your tradition of giving. The Bob McCarthy Foundation (www.bobmccarthyfoundation.com) wishes all of you a great holiday season. Thank you Ellicottville. We will see you next year!