Night at the Nest raises $57,000 for student athletes

The UW-River Falls Athletics department saw success at its Jan. 31 “Night at the Nest” event, which raised much-needed funds for the university’s athletic programs. The fundraiser, which was held in Page Arena, featured silent auctions and live auctions, both in-person and online, for various experiences and items. The event benefited over 500 UWRF student-athletes.

“Night at the Nest” is the first time that Athletics has held a fundraiser at the scale. Over 50 items were up for auction at “Night at the Nest,” including experiences such as a fishing trip, a spa outing, a distillery tour and tasting session, sled dog and horse riding experiences, a sushi dining experience, and a five-day vacation in Puerto Rico. 

Several sports experiences, such as tickets for Minnesota Wild, Twins, Gophers, and Frost games, and Wisconsin Badgers, Milwaukee Bucks, and St. Paul Saints experiences, were also featured at the event. There were also two footballs signed by Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and tight end Travis Kelce. 

A variety of foods and beverages were served by students in the Athletic department as well. “We want the live auction items to be amazing experiences that people can’t find just anywhere,” Scott Sekelsky, UWRF Athletics Advancement Officer, said. 

“We were expecting 175 people here, ” Sekelsky said in an interview at the event, “and another 80 or so bidding at home.” By the end of the night, the event saw 165 in-person attendees and 80 online attendees. A total of 626 bids were cast for the items at both the live auction and the silent auction, and approximately $57,000 was raised for the UWRF Athletics department. At the event, Sekelsky said it was going “better than expected.” 

“Night at the Nest” will benefit over five hundred student-athletes, with the proceeds going to transportation, meals, equipment, and other expenses. A number of sponsors, many of them local businesses, made the event possible. 

Athletics Director Crystal Lanning said that UWRF’s budget concerns have made it less able to fund its athletics programs, which is why alternative revenue streams like fundraisers are necessary for the department. “As athletic director, it has been my goal to develop more department-wide fundraising initiatives so that we can decrease the fundraising burden for individual sports programs,” she said in a UWRF Newsroom article.

According to Lanning, student-athletes and coaches currently have to contribute to fund-raising for transportation and equipment. The funds raised at “Night at the Nest” will go toward these and other basic expenses.

“Our student-athletes deserve the best possible experience while they are here, and this event is one way that we can do that,” said Sekelsky. He hopes that the success of the event will lead to other fundraising opportunities in the future.