Funds raised provide scholarships for student-athletes involved in Winthrop's 18
NCAA Division I sports. The 26th Eagle Club Scholarship Auction is set for April 15, 2017.
ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA — The 2016 Eagle Club Scholarship Auction raised $108,000 for athletic scholarships — the second-highest total in the auction's 25-year history.
The event, which attracted more than 400 attendees, raised nearly $56,000 during the May live auction, with $10,000 in initial bids
at the silent auction's opening.
Participants bid on a wide array of items donated by Winthrop faculty, staff and area
businesses, including an Alaskan fishing trip, dinner with Winthrop President Dan Mahony and his wife, Laura, and artwork — created at the live auction — by interactive artist
Jared Emerson of Greenville, South Carolina.
Auction Co-Chair Lisa Trunk '76, '91, who managed the auction with Co-Chair Watts Huckabee '89, attributed the event's success to "the generosity of our wonderful donors, bidders
and volunteers, who helped make the 2016 auction a unique and entertaining event."
Mobile bidding, available for the first time this year, helped increase the auction's revenue and
encouraged participation. Auction proceeds will provide valuable scholarships for student-athletes involved in the university's 18 NCAA Division I sports.
Trunk and Huckabee, who will continue as co-chairs for next year's auction, said they want to build on the 2016 auction's success and increase community involvement, nurturing the partnership between Rock Hill and Winthrop Athletics. Another vital
step, Huckabee added, will be to engage the entire Winthrop Athletics department as
well as all athletic team coaches and student-athletes.
"The Eagle Club Scholarship Auction is a tremendous opportunity for us to engage those
who are athletically minded to contribute to the Winthrop community and student-athletes,"
said Huckabee.
The 26th Eagle Club Scholarship Auction is set for April 15, 2017. Contact Karen Trunk, Eagle Club membership coordinator, at 803/323-2129, ext. 6224,
or trunkk@winthrop.edu to find out more information, or to offer donations or suggestions
for the event.
