30th Annual Groundhog Day Auction this week

The Muskingum County Community Foundation’s 30th annual Groundhog Day Auction is coming later this week.

The auction starts at 5 p.m. Friday at the Campus Center at Ohio University Zanesville and Zane State College. It helps raise money for the community foundation’s spring grant competition.

"It’s been wonderful," Director of Educational Services at the Community Foundation, Heather Sands said. "Last year they actually raised over $40,000 at the 2014 event. So our goal of course is to continue to raise the money because that way we can give it away."

Sands said all the money raised goes straight to the grant competition. Anyone is welcome to attend the auction. You can buy tickets at the door or preregister with the community foundation.

"It’s $30 a ticket," Sands said. "They can buy tickets at the door. There will be a silent auction where people can bid on the local artwork. They can go on ahead and bid on different things that were donated from area businesses and also we’ll have a live auction as well."

Sands said people can go the the Community Foundation’s Facebook page to see pictures of all the items available at the auction.