BY JAY MITCHELL

The only used car lot on the island is scheduled to open later this month for a limited six-hour period. “Uncle Roy’s Used Car Lot,” a prominent feature of the Annual Rotary Auction and Rummage Sale, will be stocked with a wide array of vehicles donated by our local residents.

The vehicles may be previewed pre-auction from 4-7 p.m. on Friday, June 26, and will be sold to the highest bidder via silent bid from 8-a.m. to noon the next day during the rummage sale.

The used car lot is named for long-time island resident and Rotarian Roy Egaas.

The Rotary Club of Bainbridge Island is accepting tax-deductible donations of autos, trucks, trailers and boats now through auction time.

This is a great opportunity for tax-deductible donations to be made locally. Most of the proceeds from the sales are returned to the community with the many beneficial projects of the Rotary Club.

The donation criteria are quite simple: vehicles must have a clear and available title, and be in safe running condition.

Preferably, the vehicles – autos, trucks, trailers, RVs and boats – will be dropped off at the Woodward Middle School auction site June 20-24. To arrange earlier donations, call me at 206-919-5376 or Paul at 206-281-8100.

The lot is in its 49th year of operation and thanks to the generosity of community residents, a substantial portion of the auction proceeds come from the sale of the vehicles.

Many advertisements for vehicle donations appear in newspapers. Some are legitimate and beneficial, some are not. Often, a very small percentage of the proceeds are returned to the cited charity.

You can be sure that with your local Rotary donation, the proceeds are well managed and most of the funds will be channeled back into our community to many charitable projects.

Some of the dollars provide seed money to obtain grants from Rotary International to fund projects around the globe, such as drilling water wells in Uganda. In short, your donation can make a huge difference in people’s lives!

Friendly Rotarians will be available to assist in the vehicle purchases on the day of the rummage sale.

They promise that there will be no “bait and switch” tactics, high-pressure sales, white shoes or belts!

All vehicles will be sold to the highest bidder, almost always at bargain prices.

Call us today and arrange to save yourself the agony of selling your car and the luxury of having a beneficial tax deduction.

Don’t miss this year’s Rotary Auction and Rummage Sale, and be sure to stop by Uncle Roy’s Used Car Lot on June 27. It’s the only one on the island!

Jay Mitchell is a Rotarian and co-manager of the car lot.