Auction benefits museum

FLORENCE - Bonita McKay, art teacher at the Early Arts at Edgemont, held up a painting to a class of 5-year-old preschoolers. Each preschooler had painted an animal in the

rainforest.

Marinna Horner stood in front of the class and pointed to her contribution. “Mine is a really good humming bird; it’s graceful,” she said. “It also looks beautiful.”

The class project, along with several others will be up for auction Saturday to benefit the Early Arts program and the Children’s Museum of the Shoals as the museum expands its exhibits, repairs its popular Tennessee River model and seeks to hire a part-time education curator and a full-time director.

The museum is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. or by appointment for groups during its redesign.

“I’ve wanted to partner with them obviously because we have similar goals,” said Jennie Corley, founder and director of Early Arts at Edgemont United Methodist Church and who is also a museum board member. She said one of the goals of the art auction was to raise awareness about the children’s museum that helps teach children about the Shoals’ heritage.

“We have a fabulous art show every year, and I thought it would be good to have it at the children’s museum.”

Ten classes will contribute group projects to the auction including a white picket fence painted with greenery, flowers and bugs.

Individual art will also be available for sale, including handmade paper, swirled enamel paintings, painted canvas bags with footprints transformed into birds and bright canvases with multicolored pasta flowers.

The event will also feature barbecue and live entertainment including Angela Hacker, James LeBlanc, Mike Roberts and Chad Reeves.

A variety of items donated from the community will also be available for auction that run the gambit from singing lessons, paintings, personalized drawings, photographic prints, even an Alabama football signed by Nick Saban.

“I’ve been overwhelmed by the response from the community,” Corley said of the dozens of businesses that have donated items for Saturday’s auction.

Trevor Stokes can be reached at 740-5728 or trevor.stokes@timesdaily.com.