MERRIMAC — Friends of the Merrimac Public Library encouraged the community to get creative for its latest fundraiser, the “Chair Affair.”
The Chair Affair is a silent auction where 14 chairs painted by local artists are auctioned off individually and sold to the highest bidders.
The idea for the auction came about in 2019 when the library had a myriad of extra wooden children’s chairs. Because of the excess of chairs, a previous library director suggested the Friends of the Merrimac Public Library ask local artists to decorate each one and bring it back to the library where it would be auctioned.
Artists did just that and that year, 25 chairs were auctioned, raising about $1,600, according to Marie Greeley, president of Friends of the Merrimac Public Library.
This year, the Friends of the Library decided to host another auction with the remaining 14 chairs with all proceeds supporting youth services programming at the library.
Merrimac Public Library Director Aila Colburn said fundraisers like this one are important, because the library does not have a programming budget.
“Without their help we wouldn’t be able to do all the programming that we do,” she said of the Friends of the Library. “We do not have a budget for programming, so anything that they fundraise for us will help us provide services and stuff for the community,”.
To promote the auction, flyers were sent out in late May and a social media post was made encouraging local artists to take home the chairs and put their own artistic spin on them.
All 14 chairs were taken, and community members adorned the wooden furniture with designs ranging from the emblems of Boston sports teams to a scene featuring Winnie the Pooh and his friends.
Then, earlier this month, the chairs were set up in the library, allowing locals to enter a bid on the creations. The starting bid for each chair is $25, and on Aug. 7, the day after bidding ends, the winners of each chair will be notified.
Greeley said both this year’s auction and 2019’s auction have left her awestruck.
“It’s amazing, the work that people put into these chairs, the creativity. It’s amazing and it’s very overwhelming in a way to see how people just jump in,” she said.
Greeley also said she is thankful for the people that are enthusiastic about bidding on the chairs, as the auction would not be possible without them.
“It’s great, it really is,” she said of people supporting the library by bidding. “There are people that are really excited by this,”.
Those interested in bidding on the chairs can stop by the Merrimac Public Library, 86 West Main St., during regular hours through Aug. 6.