Auction boosts Guard families

Adam Boyle of Barre examines silent auction items on a table at the Barre Elks Club on Saturday during a benefit for Vermont National Guard families.

JEB WALLACE-BRODEUR/TIMES ARGUS

Auction boosts Guard families
By David Delcore TIMES ARGUS STAFF - Published: August 24, 2009


BARRE – The banner outside the Barre Elks Lodge on Saturday stated: "Guard(ian) Angels Auction." However, the message could just as easily have been: "Mission Accomplished!"

Before the doors ever opened on an auction that was designed to raise funds to assist the families of 1,500 members of the Vermont National Guard who will be deployed to Afghanistan later this year, the event's bubbly organizer declared it a success.

"This is bigger than I ever imagined," Elizabeth Perreault said, while taking care of a few last-minute details for what had been a summer-long project that took on a life of its own.

When she came up with the idea of hosting a silent auction back in June, Perreault, whose husband, Paul, is among the guardsman scheduled to deploy, said she hoped to collect perhaps $1,000 worth of items that could be sold to raise money for "family readiness centers" located at each of the state's 18 armories.
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Auction boosts Guard families