MULTNOMAH COUNTY, Ore. — A sign from the former Sauvie Island Bridge, now named Wapato Bridge, will soon be auctioned off at a school's annual auction.
The two signs with the bridge's former name were removed in early March and replaced with signs bearing the bridge's new name. One of the old signs was given to a fire department and the other to the Sauvie Island School, a K-8 public charter school on the island.
The Sauvie Island School is a public charter school that only receives 80% of its funding from the state and relies on outside resources to supplement the other 20%.
"We are always looking for support to fill that 20%, so that's why our parent-teacher club is huge in that," said Darla Meeuwsen, the executive director of the school. "We would not have art, we wouldn't have music, we wouldn't have field trips. All of those things come from our parent-teacher club."
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After the signs were removed, one of the school's board members reached out to Multnomah County to see if it would donate a sign for the school's annual auction in May. The county said the two signs were given to the local Grange, who then handed them out to both the fire station and the school.
"As soon as we heard that we were gonna get the sign ... between texting and messaging and social media, the buzz is out there that it's definitely something that local islanders are very interested in acquiring," Meeuwsen said.
The sign has seen better days; it's weathered and cracked, and looks more like a county road map covered over by the sign's huge letters. A member of the school's parent-teacher club said they hope to get around $5,000 for it.
The auction is put on by the school's parent-teacher club, a main fundraiser for the school that brings in over $100,000 every year. Previous years have had a safari trip and other various items donated by businesses and community members.
"This year, we have tickets for a Timbers game in the Adidas suite; we have a stay up at Mount Hood. We have this amazing Sauvie Island Bridge sign," Meeuwsen said.
The silent and oral auction will be held at Columbia Farms on May 18. It's open to the public for those 21 years old and over.