By SUSAN PARK

It doesn't just take a village, it takes a City like Seattle to put on a big shindig like the annual B.F. Day auction that took place March 6 at Adobe Systems Inc. in Fremont.

Families and companies from near and far donated auction items for the fundraiser to benefit this little elementary school in Fremont. When the final bids were tallied and all the bills paid for putting on the auction/dinner, the event raised a record high $27,000 for the school.

The list of auction items was literally a "who's who" of Seattle. Items up for bid included a roundtable luncheon with Mayor Paul Schell that went for $250. The winner will be able to have a good hour of personal "ear-bending" time to discuss their own concerns with how the City of Seattle is being run. Another lunch with King County Executive Ron Sims went for only $100 - perhaps because issues with the County are less controversial at the moment.

House Co-Speaker/State Rep. Frank Chopp's donation of short tour of the Capitol Building in Olympia followed by lunch in the cafeteria brought in $150. Not to be outdone, Chopp, who was present with his wife, Nancy Long, turned around and bid on the "Principal for a Day" to give B.F. Day Principal Susan McCloskey a day off.

Even sillier items, such as an offer by Seattle Times columnist Jean Godden, to record your outgoing message on your voice mail, went for only $85. The same offer from KOMO TV 4 weatherman Steve Pool also went for $85. Both were purchsed by the same bidder. Perhaps they'll interchange the messages depending on the forecast.

A guided tour of the new Safeco Field ballpark complete with a chance to press the button to open up the retractable roof went for $325. A chance to drive a Race Car at Evergreen Speedway went for $300. And a chance for you and three of your friends to sit for an hour in a BoeingFlightSafety flight simulator went for $600.

Perhaps the most Fremont-valuable donations were the three year-long parking passes on the Auction Block. One from L&M Partners and one from U-Park System went for $400 each and were purchased by Mike Peck, owner of Fremont Architectural Pottery. There was even one at B.F. Day School itself, which went for $225.

The most interesting items by far were the priceless heirloom quilts, floor coverings, and crafts made by B.F. Day students themselves. The most expensive item on the auction block and the most breathtaking was a quilt created of self-portraits by all the students of Mr. Corsa's kindergarten class. A parent in the class transferred the self-portraits to cream-colored quilting squares, needlepointed them, and assembled them in a big quilt. Kindegartner Ashley Nerbovig's parents got to take home the quilt for only $900.

All attendees were wined and dined by the creative caterers from Adobe System's own in-house company restaurant. The food alone was well worth the $15 registration fee.

All of the proceeds will go to the B.F. Day foundation, which funds various school programs such as the After School Tutoring Program and Classes, the Computer Lab, and the Family Dinner Program. More than half of the students at B.F. Day are eligible for the free and reduced lunch program. The auction was designed to raise money due to Seattle School District budget shortfalls.

B.F. Day Elementary is located at 3921 Linden Ave. N.