Eagle Club Scholarship Auction raises $150,000 for Winthrop student-athlete scholarships
A record $150,000 was raised for student-athlete scholarships at last Saturday night’s 26th annual Eagle Club Scholarship Auction, according to figures announced by Winthrop athletic director Ken Halpin.
In addition to the dollars raised, the event, which was attended by more than 450 people, also honored the charter members of the Eagle Club which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. The club was founded in 1977.
“The auction was an incredible success,” said Halpin. “It was truly a special evening, as we were able to not only honor our 40-year charter members of the Eagle Club, but also allow our current student-athletes to get to know the wonderful Eagle Club members who help support their education.
“I want to thank our Eagle Club Board and Auction Committee, led by our auction co-chairs Lisa Trunk and Watts Huckabee, who worked tirelessly to help make this such a fantastic event. We look forward to continuing to make the Eagle Club Scholarship Auction one of the premier athletic events of the entire year, and cannot wait to see everyone here at the Coliseum next year.”
The auction had traditionally been held in May after the end of the school year, but was moved to April this year to allow student-athletes to attend and interact with Eagle fans and supporters.
A special moment at this year’s event occurred as artist Jared Emerson entertained the audience for the second consecutive year by painting the memorable image of the late men’s basketball player De’Andre Adams jumping for joy on the sideline during the final seconds of Winthrop’s NCAA Tournament win over Notre Dame in 2007.
But rather than auction off the one-of-a-kind painting, donations in the amount of $7,200 for student-athlete scholarships were solicited from the audience at the suggestion of several Eagle Club members and the painting will be given to the Adams family.
Anyone who wasn’t able to donate to student-athlete scholarships last Saturday can still do so here.
A highlight video from the evening can be viewed by visiting this link.
This story was originally published April 12, 2017 at 11:11 AM with the headline "Eagle Club Scholarship Auction raises $150,000 for Winthrop student-athlete scholarships."