SUNDERLAND — With more than 140 items available, the Friends of the Sunderland Public Library’s fifth annual Autumn Auction has a little something for everyone.

Beginning on Wednesday, Nov. 8 and running through 5 p.m. on Nov. 15, folks can bid on handmade items created by area craftspeople and library patrons, as well as gift cards to local businesses and even a weekend trip to Cape Cod.

Carol Ryan, a member of the Friends of the Sunderland Public Library, said the auction in the past has typically featured only handmade goods, but organizers wanted to open it up a little more this year and allow the community to donate other items.

“People just decide on their own what they want to do. … It kind of just happens, I don’t try to screen anything,” Ryan explained.

Adding to that, Library Director Katherine Umstot said the community has been getting more interested in the auction every year.

“I feel like every year we just get a wider variety,” she said. “People hear about it, they see how helpful it is for the library and then they want to participate with what their talent is.”

All money raised will go to the Friends of the Sunderland Public Library, which funds things the town’s budget cannot, including additional programming, live music, technology and other initiatives.

“Everything from story time, buying coffee for the coffee and conversation group, it’s our outdoor concerts, it’s everything,” Umstot explained, adding that museum passes and other resources are also funded by the Friends. “I feel like the heart and soul of the library is what we offer the community.”

This is the fifth annual Autumn Auction for the Friends of the Sunderland Public Library. It began in 2019 as a book and bake sale, but was changed to its current format in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Last year, Ryan said the Friends set a fundraising goal of $1,200 and ultimately raised $1,500. This time around, with a larger number of items of different types, she said the fundraising goal is $2,500.

Bids can be placed at any time during the auction and winners can pay by card online or with a check or cash at the library when they pick up their items. If you bid on an item, but don’t live in the area, you can contact the library to coordinate shipping.

Auction items include shawls, scarves, quilts, ornaments, potholders, hats, a two-night stay on Cape Cod, pottery, jewelry, teddy bears and art prints, among others. Business donations include gift cards to BridgeSide Grille, Frontier Pizza, Commonwealth Strength, Millstone Farm Market, McCoy’s Place, Banchan Korean Deli and Bub’s BBQ.

Bidding wars, Ryan and Umstot said, are common, so bidders will have to bring their A-game if they want to secure an early holiday present.

“Bid early, bid high,” Ryan joked. “It’s so much fun this way. It’s really a back and forth.”

For more information about the Autumn Auction, as well as a link to bid on items, visit the Sunderland Public Library’s website at sunderlandpubliclibrary.org/auction.

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com or 413-930-4081.