By Bonnie Culverhouse

Even without extra help this year, Minden St. Jude Auction still topped $2M to help St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, remaining the highest donations per capita in the country.

Auction co-chair Laura Hollingsworth said it was a humbling 4-day weekend filled with events.

“We had more than a million dollars in just internet sales,” she said. “The auction was watched in 40 countries and all 50 states.”

In 2022, the auction made more than $2.4 million, thanks to a generous donation left in a will by a local man, Alford Davis.

“There were so many contributors this year,” said co-chair Melissa Brown. “In 1993, Richardson School started it for the schools, and the next year, they started contributing toward the playhouse and raised about $2,000. That was the beginning and other schools got involved and now they contribute hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. This year alone, we got about $130,000 just from the schools in our area.”

The many facets of the Minden St. Jude Auction include the Race for the Cure, a chili cook-off and the many raffles and auction items. Winner of the grand prize, a GMC Yukon or $50,000 cash is Joey Elawadi of Ruston. Brown said he elected to take the cash.

Hollingsworth said it is awesome all the people who come together to make the auction successful each year.

“It’s such a representation of what this auction really is,” she said, highlighting the many workers who design and build the playhouse each year. “So many people that come together to make a beautiful thing out of love for the kids of St. Jude.”