Raising the Barn

It was clear that Bid for the Barn [1] was a success when donations continued to trickle in even after bidding in the online auction ended on Sunday, January 23. The goal was to raise money to help Pete’s Greens [2] farm in Craftsbury rebuild the barn it lost in a fire last month. By the end of the auction, 336 items had been on the block, most of which were bought for well more than their stated value. A dinner for two at Hen of the Wood at the Grist Mill [3] brought in 489 percent more than its actual worth.

According to organizer Robin McDermott of the Mad River Valley Localvore Project, [4] when bids were tallied on the evening of January 30, the grand total was $64,669. Some “backroom bidding” on Monday brought the final donation to $65,119. If all goes well, the Craftsbury farm will have little trouble paying for new facilities.