Friends of the Library is running its annual Silent Chair Auction to benefit Hoag

Photos by Tom Rivers

ALBION – There are about 40 chairs up for bid util the library closes today at 2 p.m., including the one in the top photo with a Pac-Man design. It was painted by students at Albion High School.

The bids art at a minimum of $20.

Cathy Moore, a member of the Friends, said the chair auction s one of the biggest fundraisers for the Friends. She encourages people to bid, and to check out the creative displays on the stools and chairs.

“It’s fun,” she said about the chairs painted in many different colors and designs. “You get all kinds of different things.”

Albion Middle School students painted the chair at left with a music theme and also the stool that looks like a cow, including with an udder below the seat. Judy Manley painted the rabbit-themed chair at far right.

Many local residents and artists contributed to the chair auction, including former library director Susan Rudnicky. She painted flowers on a folding chair. Rudnicky has painted a chair for the fundraiser every year since it started more than a decade ago back when the auction was held at the former Swan Library.