Auctioneering is a career path few attempt, and even fewer find great success in. Well we’re sure sold on the 2014 winner for Best Auctioneer in the Valley, Letitia Frye.
Frye has made quite a name for herself in the Valley and nationally as a leading auctioneer, and a lot of cash, to boot – the 10-year veteran has raised more than $100 million for charity through her work.
She’s worked thousands of charity events, from local first year events to concerts, golf tournaments, galas and the annual Superbowl “Legends for Charity” dinner. She has raised substantial revenue for nonprofits including St. Jude, Ronald McDonald House, Arthritis Foundation, Alzheimers Foundation, Autism, American Cancer Society, Equine Voices Horse Rescue, and many more. Through these opportunities, Frye has shared the stage with the likes of Johnny Depp, Donald Trump and Alice Cooper, and visited nearly every major American city.
We asked Frye for an inside look into the life of an auctioneer, and reflect on her career of dazzling evening gowns, travel and entertaining.
“Benefit auctions are now the only type of auctions that I do. I used to do a wide variety of auctions from equipment, estates, and art to real estate. Now I have devoted my life solely to non profits and helping others.
Many people think it is a glamorous life running from event to event but the truth is it takes tremendous dicipline and energy to pull it all off. Just two weeks ago I had 7 events in 8 days around the country. I was hopping off airplanes at 10am, changing in cars, and back on a stage by 11:30am, only to turn around head back to the airport and do it again. I went through DC in under 17 hours.
My commitment to my clients and the people they serve is unwaivering and everyone is given 110%. Auctions, in particular benefit auctions, should be high energy, informative, passionate and most importantly FUN! A dear colleague once reminded me that the word fun is in fundrasing, and we should always keep that in mind.
I love my job for many reasons, but the one that stands out the most is when a child has created something, like a drawing, and it ends up on the auction block with me. I recently sold a two year old girl’s drawing for $5,000, and the picture of me you see here, was from this year’s Beach Ball where 2 young girl’s artwork was given to assist us with raising bids during the ask. Those two young girls brought in $25,000 each and with that $50,000, helped hundreds, if not thousands, of other little kids fighting cancer.
Now that is a great feeling, and the best part of being an auctioneer!”
About Letitia Frye
Known as America’s foremost “Auctiontainer”, Letitia Frye is celebrating a decade and over $100 million dollars raised in the fundraising industry. Her unique style, passion and uncanny ability to memorize content give way to engaging performance at each event. Letitia’s commitment to the organizations and individuals they serve set her apart from the rest. She can be found on stages across the United States and Canada, and is honored to be a part of all of her events. Letitia lives in Scottsdale with her two kids, and is an avid runner and archer. You can learn more about Letitia at Letitiafye.com.
