NOTE: check back here for an updated listing of all silent auction items and the featured silent auction item of the week.

Now that spring is FINALLY here, and summer’s just around the corner, you’ll want to make the most of the warm weather and the cool breezes, and all that our community has to offer.  How about doing that – as well as enjoying great food and company – and at the same time contributing to the preservation of a natural treasure, the Burnt Lands Alvar?

All you need to do is participate in the Mississippi Valley Field Naturalists’ 2015 Spring Gathering on Thursday, May 21 at the Almonte Civitan Hall, where you can enjoy a great meal, a fascinating talk by the evening’s keynote speaker, Jean Lauriault, an expert on the mysteries of Monarch butterflies, and – a silent auction.  All funds raised from this silent auction will go towards supporting MVFN’s efforts to preserve the Burnt Lands Alvar. Remember to purchase or reserve your tickets by Thursday, May 14!

What is on offer at this silent auction?  Paintings and art work galore – by Amelia Ah You, Jennifer Noxon, and Mary Pal, as well as a variety of other fine art creations with a nature theme.

What if you’re keen to explore the outdoors and learn about nature?  Well, you can bid on several amazing experiences – crewing on a sailboat, a nature tour, a day of birding in Prince Edward County, or a geological Alvar tour.  For other experiences closer to home, why not bid on a night of musical entertainment, a garden tour and lunch for six people, Spanish lessons, or bilingual home tutoring?

Perhaps there’s a special person in your life in need of some rest and relaxation?  What better treat than a biodynamic massage, a Reiki treatment, a massage treatment certificate, a special package from Soul Scents, or a sailboat excursion followed by a scrumptious lunch?

If you’re looking for ways to spruce up your abode, there will be something for that too in our silent auction!  A home-styling session, a garden consultation, a cubic yard of compost delivered to your home, or a monthly bouquet of fresh flowers are all sure to provide that extra oomph.

Although you can bid on a few pieces of silent auction fine art while they are displayed at Mill Street Books in Almonte (from May 12 to 20), bidding on these will continue on until the close of bidding during the May 21st Spring Gathering event. All other auction items are available for bidding at the MVFN Spring Gathering only. Watch the MVFN website and Burnt Lands Alvar Campaign FB page for an updated listing of all silent auction items, as well as our weekly featured silent auction item. Tickets ($40) for the 2015 Spring Gathering Dinner, Keynote Presentation and Silent Auction are available from Gilligallou Bird Store (Almonte); Reads Book Shop (CP) and The Office, Perth; or contact Brenda Boyd: bjboyd@mvfn.ca or 613-256-2706 to reserve.

We hope to see you at our Spring Gathering, and out and about this summer, enjoying the fruits of your hard-earned bidding!