Fall Festival & Quilt Auction

ONLINE AUCTION: Open now through 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25! To view the online catalog and place your bids, CLICK HERE then click “Catalog” at the top. 160+ items up for bids in the Online Auction!

LIVE AUCTION: Saturday, Sept. 24, at Camp Ewalu, just 3 miles west of Strawberry Point in scenic northeast Iowa. Our address is 37776 Alpha Ave., Strawberry Point, IA 52076. See the day’s schedule below! More than 120 quilts and hand-crafted items up for bids in our live auction, plus dozens more quilts and items for sale in the Country Store all day.

Held annually for 35 years with the help and support of congregations, quilters, and volunteers, nearly 300 quilts are donated to the camp, and numerous hand-crafted items are given to raise additional funds. These funds support projects and capital improvements that the camp cannot achieve through the annual operating budget.

Join us for live music, a worship service, hayride tours of the camp, and more than 300 quilts and quality hand-crafted items displayed for review. A free-will lunch is served at noon, and the live auction itself starts at 1:00. It is a day to celebrate and support the incredible ministry that occurs at Camp Ewalu!

This year’s Quilt Auction will run as a hybrid online and in-person auction. More than 100 quilts will be available for auction on-site during our traditional quilt auction on Saturday, Sept. 24, 2022. Participants can bid on dozens of additional quilts online during the week before the in-person auction and for one day after the in-person auction. The quilts up for bids online will be available to view on Sept. 24 at camp.

Online quilt viewing and registration will begin on Wednesday, Sept. 7, at https://charityauction.bid/EwaluQuiltAuction.

SCHEDULE

Monday, Sept. 19, 12:00 p.m. – Online bidding begins
Friday, Sept. 23, 6:00 p.m. – Country Store bidding closes online

Saturday, Sept. 24 (In person at Camp Ewalu)

• • 9:00 a.m. – Quilt viewing begins, and Country Store opens
  • 11:00 a.m. – Devotional worship service
  • 12:00 p.m. – Freewill lunch begins
  • 1:00 p.m. – Live quilt auction (bidding resumes from online auction)

Sunday, Sept. 25, 7:00 p.m. – Online bidding closes

 

Bidding Changes (same as 2021)

• We recently have made some changes to our original auction format to accommodate updates with our auction program.
• Over 100 quilts and items will be auctioned off in our on-site auction on Saturday, Sept. 24, at Camp Ewalu. Due to time, we’re not able to include EVERY donated item in the live auction.
• An additional 100+ quilts and items will be available on our online auction, so be sure to check out both auctions. Those items will also be on display at camp on Sept. 24 if you want to see them in person.
• We can facilitate “proxy bids” for quilts in the on-site auction Sept. 24. If you see an item you wish to bid on for Sept. 24 and are unable to attend the onsite auction, you may fill out THIS FORM by 7 p.m. Friday, Sept. 23, 2022, with the maximum amount you are willing to pay for that item. We have a system to handle proxy bids in person during the live auction.

Country Store

Items typically available in the Country Store will be available to purchase online from Sept. 19 at 12:00 p.m. – Sept. 23 at 7:00 p.m. After that point, any remaining items will be sold in the on-site Country Store the following day. So if you want to make sure you get that item, use the “Buy It Now” price! If you are coming to the live auction on Sept. 24, we’ll have any Online Country Store items you’ve purchased ready for you to pick up.

 

Live Music with the Briggs Family Band

We’re happy to have the Briggs Family Band from New Virginia, IA, providing live music at our event this year! The Briggs family lives on a small acreage in rural Iowa, where the older girls developed an early love for bluegrass music and traditional acoustic string instruments by attending music festivals and stage shows from the time they were toddlers. The Briggs Family Band features Galen on guitar, Stephanie on bass, Mike Carter on banjo, Kaitlyn (18) on mandolin, Ashlyn (16) on fiddle, and Evelyn (7) on vocals, when she feels like it. They have been playing music together since 2013 and entertaining with a mix of bluegrass, traditional country, gospel and whatever else the girls decide to play.

Bremwood Donations

The option to donate purchased quilts to Bremwood will remain an option this year.

Quilt & Craft Donations

If you have a quilt you would like to donate we request that it be delivered to our camp office by Friday, Sept. 2 so it can included online when quilt viewing begins and included in our Quilt Book. Each donation must have an Item Donation Form with it, and you can find that form by clicking the green button at the top of the page. We are no longer accepting donations for 2022; please hold your item for next year!

Supporting This Event

This event would not be possible without the generosity of quilters and crafters throughout eastern Iowa. Additional support comes through congregations, quilt/fabric shops, Thrivent Financial, local businesses and organizations in areas like In-lieu-quilt gifts, advertising, event supplies, and more!

Quilters & Crafters: Please consider making a quilt or item for the auction. To provide variety and interest in the auction, we also auction other hand-made items, especially wooden items such as wooden bowls. Though over 300 items are donated for the auction, we can only put about 130 items in the live auction. All other items are either put up for bids in the online auction (including top-quality items!), or priced and sold in the “Country Store” on Sept. 24. If you are unable to donate a completed item, we also accept quilt tops, squares, pieces, batting, and other quilt or craft supplies.

In-lieu-of-quilts: If you are unable to donate a quilt or craft item, there are still ways to help! You can make a monetary gift in lieu of an item, donate baked goods, plants and fresh produce for the food stand, or volunteer to demonstrate your craft trade at the event. We also rely on volunteer assistance for operating the food stand and country store.

There’s an amazing story unfolding here through the ministry of Camp Ewalu. It’s the story of God’s love made transparent through Christ and demonstrated through the generosity of many supporters like you. Thank you for the many creative ways that you support this ministry. We look forward to working with you in the months leading to the Fall Festival and Quilt Auction!