Paris, Tenn.–The Henry County Helping Hand Radio Auction board of directors has announced the calendar for the 2022 auction and that social distancing changes will be made in the layout of the auction site to safeguard the safety of volunteers, bidders and auctioneers.
The auction will be held from January 10-March 2 at the Paris Convention Center at 1510 E. Wood St. in Paris and once again will be broadcast daily over WTPR 101.FM and 710 AM. It also will be livestreamed over our website at www.radionwtn.com.
Due to the COVID-pandemic, last year’s auction was modified frpm how the event usually is conducted.
Helping Hand President John Berryman said the board has received funding applications from some 85 groups. Approval notifications will be mailed before Christmas, he said.
Auctioneers will be: Andy Collins, Ray Compton, Noel Hampton, Junior Staggs, Jamie Orr, David Jackson, Darrin Thompson and Doug Taylor.
Phone numbers will be: auction phone 644 1695 and office phone 644 1833. The 2022 schedule includes four night auctions.
The board has been meeting in preparation for the 2022 auction and one of the main items of discussion is how to safeguard everyone who attends the auctions each day.
“Concerns had been raised about the many people who usually gather around the auctioneer’s table during the auction,” Berryman said. “Based on recommendations from local health care professionals and in an effort to help keep the spacing of bidders, auctioneers, and volunteers safe and reasonable, the decision was made to reconfigure the room at the Paris Convention Center so that the auctioneer’s table will be on the stage. The auctioneer’s table will be cordoned off and inaccessible to the audience.”
The Henry County School System has offered to loan us the use of cameras, projectors, laptops and other associated equipment as well as the personnel to install it, “so that we will be able to project current bids on the walls immediately adjacent to the stage. Paris Special Schools will be loaning us plexiglass dividers to separate the volunteers working at the auctioneer’s table,” he said.
The Helping Hand board would like to encourage all in-person bidders to call in their bids. “The distance between bidders and people recording bids will mean that phoning in bids will be the most effective method of bidding. If this is not possible, there will be volunteers on hand to assist audience members who wish to bid,” he said.
Changes will also be made to the way the audience sees the auction items. Berryman said, “The slates, or tables with the numbered auction items, will be rolled between the auction stage and the bidding audience to allow viewing by both the audience and the volunteers working at the auctioneer’s table.”
The board hopes these measures will contribute to a safer and more “socially distant” auction this year, he said. “We, the Helping Hand board of directors, understand that this will likely slow the auction process and we hope that everyone will understand and be patient as we implement the new process.”
Helping Hand is not requiring masks, but on the advice of medical professionals, they are recommending them,” he said. “The arrival of the Omicron variant and the recent uptick in cases means that changes to all the protocols we have put in place are subject to change as needed and as dictated by public health policy. We love our community and wish to do whatever we can to keep everyone as safe as possible.”
The calendar is posted here and is also available at the Henry County Helping Hand Facebook page. It also will be available throughout the community.
