Holiday Auction Raises Over $13,000 for Local Charities

On Tuesday, December 9, the SAMCAR Foundation Council, Marketing Meetings and Special Events Committees hosted the fifth annual "Judy Ploshay Memorial Holiday Auction" at the Monterra Credit Union corporate headquarters in Redwood City, treating guests to breakfast sponsored by Janet Pepe Davis, and lively bidding with auctioneer Alan Kirth for a chance to take home auction items donated by SAMCAR members and local businesses, and support several beneficiary charities.

The auction raised over thirteen thousand dollars in total for several beneficiary charities: Second Harvest of Silicon Valley, St. Anthony's Padua Dining Room, Coastside Hope, Pacifica Resource Center, San Carlos Education Foundation, SchoolForce Belmont-Redwood Shores Public School Foundation.

Funds were collected and distributed through the SAMCAR Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to assisting individuals within our community in enhancing their quality of life through financial programs, education, and housing-related initiatives and activities (EIN 94-3163126).

About the Beneficiaries

Beneficiaries for this auction are selected annually by the SAMCAR Foundation Council. In 2025, the council formally established guidelines for giving to align with the mission of the SAMCAR Foundation and history of the auction, which began as the "Canned Tree Auction" to support local food initiatives. They recommended that at least 35% of funds go to food-related charities, another 35% at least to housing-related organizations, and 10% to local school or educational foundations. Joining longtime beneficiaries this year were the addition of organizations including Second Harvest Food Bank and the Pacifica Resource Center and Coastside Hope, in acknowledgement of the whole of San Mateo County focus the auction has expanded to since its inception.

"The Judy Ploshay auction is always such a pleasure to prepare for and participate in, knowing we are encouraging generosity during the holiday season and helping critically important non-profits spread holiday cheer on a county-wide scale," shared 2025 Foundation Council chairperson Kirsten Hagen, adding "We are thrilled to continue Judy's vision with a successful auction again this year!"

Foundation Council vice chair Alfredo Mendoza also noted that the auction "continues to be an ideal platform for the Realtor community to open up our hearts and wallets during the holidays," including that "we know the money raised is an important and welcome financial boost for the meaningful and deserving non-profits we give to!"

Winning Bids and Fund-A-Need Supporters

Funds raised at the auction are derived from the generous bids from attendees, as well as fund-a-need donations encouraged by auctioneer Alan Kirth even after all the prize packages had been claimed. Many thanks to Jason Born, Janet Pepe Davis, Alfredo Mendoza, Patrick Sullivan, Jean Joh, Robert Pedro, Michelle Velez, Chad Krakow, Eric Berggren, Alan Louie, Andy Block, Iggy Lopez, Jesse Gutierrez, Bryce Cook, Diane Wilson, Jeanie Jackson, Eric Hartnett, Mercedes Pinkard, Ray Avanzino, Mirela Bologa, Dalen Gilbrech, Christina Galletti, and Craig Burleigh for supporting the auction with their financial contributions.

Prize Donors

Likewise, there is no auction without the plentiful array of unique and festive prize packages. Local businesses and SAMCAR members donated a variety of prize items including merchandise, food and wine, experiences, several sets of San Francisco Giants tickets and much more. Many thanks to the following individuals and organizations for donating auction items: Alan Kirth (Guarantee Mortgage), Betcy Jacob (Coldwell Banker), BroadwaySF & Andrea Bologna (First American Home Warranty), Chad Krakow, Christina Galleti & Marlin Handley (HomeGuard Inc.), Craig Burleigh (Photographer), David Zigal, Denise Ventura (HomeGuard Home Warranty), Diane Viviani & Jeni Litvinchuk (Berkshire Hathaway HomeService Drysdale Properties), Diane Wilson (Intero), DonnaMarie Baldwin (Compass), Eric Hartnett (Attorney), Janet Pepe Davis (Hometown Realty), Judy Taylor (Compass), Kathy Zmay (Sequoia Real Estate), Kaur Fine Art Portraits, Margaret Faherty (Fidelity National Home Warranty), Maxine Dumas & Michelle Dumas (Dumas and Company), Michelle Velez (Mortgage Dynamics Group), Monterra Credit Union, Nestor Icaza (eXp Realty of California, Inc.), Ray Avanzino (Polaris Capital Partners), Remoov, Robert Pedro (Signature Realty), Steve Cresci (TruSummit Insurance Solutions), Toni Burrows (Home Warranty of America), and Val Hardwick (AMS Bekins).

History of the Auction

For many years, SAMCAR Realtor Judy Ploshay organized the South Tour group's Holiday Auction, which started as the "Canned Tree Auction," raising thousands of dollars for these and other local charities. In 2020, when restrictions on in-person gatherings impacted the possibility of continuing this annual auction, Judy encouraged the group to move forward with a virtual auction, which took place on Zoom and raised over ten thousand dollars.

Many of Judy's family and colleagues have shared with SAMCAR staff how important the SAMCAR Foundation and this annual auction were to Judy, emphasizing how much she cared about supporting the organizations that benefit by Realtors collective charitable giving.

In April 2021, the SAMCAR community was deeply saddened to learn that Judy had passed away, and, at the encouragement of longtime auctioneer Eric Berggren, the SAMCAR Board of Directors directed the committee and staff to rename this annual auction in honor Judy's memory as "The Judy Ploshay Memorial Holiday Auction," marking 2021 as the beginning of a new tradition honoring Judy's commitment and dedication to this cause over the years.