66th annual Rotary Auction & Rummage Sale sets fundraising record

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, July 28, 2026

The Rotary Club of Bainbridge Island reported a record-breaking fundraising total of $1,021,366.03 in just six hours July 11 at its 66th annual Rotary Auction and Rummage Sale, which consisted of between 7,000 and 8,000 attendees and around 2,500 volunteers. 100% of net proceeds will be distributed in the form of grants, scholarships and public projects.

Last year, the sale totaled $1,018,718.75, a record amount that was shortly surpassed with an additional $2,647.28 increase this year. “We could not be more humbled or grateful for the tremendous effort and support of this community, thank you,” the Rotary Club posted on its Facebook page July 19.

After the sale ended, over 70 registered non-profits participated in the clean-up of unsold items.

This year, Rotary added 150 new credit card cashiers for the sale, totaling 195 cashiers for those not carrying cash on sale day. The tech team also reported that at peak sale time, the public Wi-Fi was hosting over 4,000 simultaneous users.

To help with the sale, volunteers didn’t just come from Bainbridge Island, let alone Washington state. There were volunteers who came from across the country.

Ann Hill traveled to the sale from Brookfield, Wisconsin, with her husband Jay for the fourth year in a row. “The Rotary Rummage Sale and Auction is an event one must witness in person,” said Hill. “Each year that I have come back, I have enjoyed seeing familiar faces volunteering. Though the work can be exhausting, I am happy to observe that most people treat each other with grace because we all have sore feet, dirty hands and can’t possibly find where to place one more item.”

Another couple that traveled the distance to help make the sale happen was Brian and Cheral Tsuchiya, from Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

“We jumped into the deep end,” said Brian. “Each day was long, and it was exhausting while simultaneously energizing. We were so impressed by the number of volunteers willing to do the heavy lifting, the leadership, the processes, the coordination and cooperation of many groups and services, and all of the nice people willing to help out the rookies. We never once felt uncomfortable or unappreciated. Congratulations to the Rotary Club of Bainbridge on an amazing event. We are very happy that we were able to make a small contribution along the way.”