Chico >> For generations, students raising livestock have looked forward to the fair as their payday.
Young people raise animals for several months and learn the value of investing time and money.
The farming community strongly supports the program, often raising animal prices in order to support the children of the community.
However, in another building of the same fair, the young people present projects that took them hours and hours. Their best reward is a small amount of money and a ribbon.
Many of these projects are exceptional and people in the community might jump at the chance to buy them, if only they were for sale.
This year, a handful of youth welding projects from the Silver Dollar Fair will be up for sale in an online auction. The program starts small, but young leaders predict students will take on even more projects next year if there’s a paycheck in sight.
To discover the works for sale, go to www.bidcal.com. Auctions end Monday.
Already, people have been throwing around some numbers on the internet, with most articles still being very reasonable.
People can also check out the website now and then visit the project in person over the weekend. The Silver Dollar Fair continues through Monday.
Gunnar Allen, 15, of Las Plumas High School, has been working on a chicken coop with his buddy Cody Dilbeck for the past few months. Their cost was $375 and they hope to fetch $600 after the auction ends. On Friday afternoon, the highest bid was $450.
Also, on Friday, an outdoor fireplace had a maximum bid of $10. Hopefully that would increase by Monday.
Other projects include a utility trailer, decorative metal dragons, metal tables, and crafts made from horseshoes.
FFA adviser Ronnie Cockrell said the idea of helping children sell their projects had been around for some time.
At present, 21 projects are listed, which is only a small part of the welding projects on display.
Cockrell predicts next year there will be dozens more. The online auction started later in the semester. Students work hard on their projects and often they are meant to be family gifts.
“A lot of them fell in love with their projects” and didn’t want to see them sold to the highest bidder, Cockrell said.
However, if young people knew they could sell their projects online, Cockrell predicts that students would make additional projects to sell.
Adding an auction for welding projects will teach young people how to become entrepreneurs, Cockrell predicted, as well as how to keep records of the time spent on a project and the value of the time invested.
Rob Ramay is well known for being the fast-paced auctioneer at the Junior Cattle Auction. As a long-time supporter of youth projects, he said it was a no-brainer when the director of Silver Dollar Fair asked him to try something new. Ramay runs bidcal.com, where online auctions are held for surplus government items, estate sales, and more.
Ramay said he was sure selling the welding project would be a win-win. Ten percent of the sale price will also go to the Silver Dollar Fair Foundation, he said.
Contact reporter Heather Hacking at 896-7758.
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