On March 8, 2023, members, partners, students, and supporters joined us at The Rex for our Big Raffle for Automotive Education. It was a great event all around, made possible by our generous sponsors. Our prime sponsor for the evening was Exeter Area New Car Dealers Association in honor of Paul Holloway’s lifetime of dedication and service to the Foundation and the Automotive industry. Throughout the evening, we awarded over $8,000 in scholarships to students through our Fast Track, raffle and silent auction.

Leading up to the event, we sold 1,000 tickets at $100 apiece. Several supporters purchased tickets to donate to area CTE students to give them a chance at the $25,000 grand prize! During the event, we pulled 66 numbered balls, all tied to NHADA partners. The last ball pulled for the evening was number 0895 and the $25,000 grand prize was awarded to Jim Boyle of Toyota of Portsmouth!

We had the Gatsby Jazz ensemble playing background jazz music as our supporters networked and enjoyed appetizers from the Hanover Street Chop House and cocktails. We held our silent auction both virtually and in person with over 35 items up for grabs, several of which were involved in intense bidding wars as the “you’ve been outbid” texts kept dinging on phones! Foundation Board Member Mike Kopp of North Country Motors got up during the last intermissions to plug some hot items with 30 minutes left on the clock. This drew even more attention to the auction and ended up closing it out by raising $12,600, our most successful silent auction in recent history!

We are committed to continuing to grow the automotive workforce here in New Hampshire one scholarship at a time. This event is so successful due to the continued support of our dedicated members and partners. Thank you for all you do!