The 44th annual Benefit Auction for the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clarita Valley will be held 5:30 p.m. Friday, June 5, in the Grand Ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Valencia.

“This is our most important fundraiser of the year,” said Ronda Chobanian, development director of the Boys & Girls Club of SCV Foundation. “We hope the community will attend and support the great kids of the SCV.”

The auction, co-chaired by Mike and Ann-Marie Bjorkman, will have the theme: Prom Revisited.

“It’s so much fun when everyone dresses for the theme,” said Chobanian. “Here’s your chance if you didn’t go to prom, or if you went to prom and want a ‘redo’ or if you remember prom fondly and want to relive the memories.”

The fundraiser will feature more than 40 live auction items and dozens of silent auction items.

Among the live auction highlights: Princess Cruise 14-day Hawaiian cruise, 10-week Maltipoo puppy, Hyatt Chef’s Table for Eight and several Six Flags Magic Mountain/Hurricane Harbor VIP experiences.

Live auction concert tickets up for bid include: Kevin Hart, Taylor Swift, Peter Frampton/Cheap Trick, Doobie Brothers, Mötley Crüe and Ice Cube/Kendrick Lamar/Snoop Dogg.

Sporting events and memorabilia include: Dodger Dugout Club seats, a commemorative Stanley Cup Champions stick signed by the Kings’ Alec Martinez who shot the winning goal for the 2014 Stanley Cup, private luxury box at Dodger Stadium for 20, Dodger pitcher Clayton Kershaw jersey, autographed bat from Los Angeles Dodger Yasiel Puig, Lakers VIP package with two floor seats, valet parking, Lexus Club dinner, signed Kobe Bryant ball and your picture with the Laker girls,

Live auction vacations include: Otter Crest Resort above a stretch of the Oregon coast and Southwest Airlines tickets, seven nights stay for up to eight people at a 2800 sq. ft. lake view home next to picturesque Lake Nacimiento, private and gated bluff top beach house in Santa Barbara, one-week timeshare in beautiful Sedona, Ariz. for two, a two-night stay in a deluxe room at the Hyatt Santa Barbara and a week at a luxury Palm Desert home.

The silent auction will feature a variety of gift baskets, sports and entertainment tickets, spa baskets and home décor.

Ann-Marie and Mike Bjorkman, co-chairs of the Boys & Girls Club of SCV Benefit Auction, right, with Ronda Chobanian, development director of the Boys and Girls Club of SCV, at the VIP Auction Preview Party.

Auction Preview Party

A recent auction preview party, held at the home of Todd and Karen Stevens in Circle J Ranch, offered VIP guests a close up look at several of the sports collectibles.

Wayne Crawford, Boys & Girls Club of SCV Foundation president, said the auction is important to the club.

“It’s for the kids,” said Crawford. “We want everyone to support the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clarita Valley, it’s one of the best things we can do for the young people of Santa Clarita. It’s also one of the best things we can do for the community. We keep these kids occupied and we mentor the youth of the SCV.”

The auction is being chaired by Mike and Ann-Marie Bjorkman.

Mike Bjorkman said the Boys & Girls Club was always a part of his life when he was a child.

“I didn’t know why I was there, I just knew that I liked being at the club,” he said. “To be able to chair this event is really an honor for us.”

Tony Watson, governing board member of the Boys & Girls Club of SCV, started volunteering at the club as a teen, shortly after moving to the SCV as a seventh grader in 1978.

His mother, Elizabeth Hopp, also a Boys & Girls Club of SCV board member, encouraged him to give back to the community at a young age.

“I really enjoy the auction; I think it is one of the best fundraisers in the SCV. It is important to the club and it is our largest fundraiser,” he said.

Ronda Chobanian, development director of the Boys & Girls Club of SCV Foundation, greets guests at the VIP Auction Preview Party.

Tickets to attend the benefit auction have been sold out, but guests can still buy raffle tickets and vote Prom King and Queen. A prom King and Queen contest is being held online with votes for the royal court costing $5 each. Online voting will continue until noon on Friday with voting continuing at the auction until 8 p.m.

Those in the running for Prom King are: Andrew Gallardo, Chris Fall, Dan Sterkel, Marshall Hahn, Gary Condie, Harold Petersen, Jim Ventress, Joshua Dubin, Ken Striplin, Mike Bjorkman, Mike Lebecki, Richard Sandnes, Robert Gardner, Ruben Hayes, Tony Newhall and Wayne Crawford.

Those running for Prom Queen are: Alisia Humphries, Amanda Benson, Ann-Marie Bjorkman, Bonnie Rabjon, Dianne Crawford, Jacqueline Petersen, Jayne Fall, Kristin Draper, Laura Chavez, Marian Sandnes, Missy Skinner, Myrna Condie, Reena Newhall , Stacie House, Stephanie Angelo and Tami Edwards.

Chobanian displays raffle tickets which allow the winner to choose from any live auction item, with a few exclusions.

Raffle

Raffle tickets are $100 each or 6 for $500, 14 for $1,000, 22 for $1,500, or 30 for $2,000, a maximum of 250 tickets will be sold. The raffle winner can select as their prize any live auction item, except the 2016 Head Table or the 14-day Hawaiian Cruise. Winner need not be present to win.

Raffle tickets may be purchased at the Newhall branch of the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Clarita Valley 24790 Newhall Avenue, Newhall, CA 91321

For more information contact the Boys & Girls Club of SCV Foundation at 661-254-3063 or visit www.scvbgc.org.