Via Starwars.com:

By now you will have read James Burns’ look at the lead up to Rancho Obi-Wan’s second Annual Gala, as we traveled across the Whale Pond from the UK to Petaluma to help owner Steve Sansweet, manager and VP Anne Neumann, and the Rancho team get ready for the event on Saturday, September 20. I’ll take up the story as we move forward to 4 p.m., as the guests start to arrive, pulling up, and signing in, checking in coats and bags, collecting their passes, and entering the museum. For those who’ve had the pleasure of visiting before, it’s a welcome return. For the first-timers it’s a mind-blowing experience that one, two, or a hundred visits won’t diminish.

The primary goal of these galas — apart from having a great time in one of the planet’s key Star Wars locations — is to raise money for Rancho Obi-Wan, which is a non-profit organization. Front and center of the festivities are two auctions; the live auction hosted by Steve himself in the Art Gallery and the silent auction in the Ephemera Room, which for this event was run by myself, James, and local fan and Rancho supporter Lucas. After carefully laying out the items and bidding sheets it was 4 p.m. and time to start the auction. For those of you who don’t know, a silent auction is similar to eBay, where you raise your bid until the clock runs out. With a plethora of items on offer — from signed copies of The Insider to exclusive Clone Wars crew items, newly released Itty Bitty’s to vintage Japanese lightsabers — we knew the room would be popular. I’ll admit to bidding on more than a few items and, as the evening progressed, the room got busier and busier as folks pitched in with their silent bids.

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