History for sale
<p>Sports and celebrity memorabilia adorning the walls of Applebee's Neighborhood Grill will be auctioned on Tuesday, June 14 with proceeds going to the Windermere Foundation.</p>
<p>Staff from Windermere Coeur d'Alene Realty and Applebee's Neighborhood Grill gather Wednesday to recognize an upcoming auction that will support the Windermere Foundation. From left, Susan Kirkpatrick, Paulette Fabian, Connie Egerer, Midge Smock, spokeswoman for Windermere Foundation, Claudia Brennan and Kyra Beamis, general manager of Applebee's.</p>
COEUR d'ALENE - You've been to Applebee's and you've seen it.
All that memorabilia on the walls throughout the restaurant. Pictures of movie stars, footballs and jerseys of NFL greats, newspaper articles of local athletes and even musical instruments and cowboy boots.
For 15 years, hundreds of pieces of history have greeted customers coming into the Hanley Avenue eatery.
Guess what?
Because of a corporate-wide remodel of Applebee's everywhere, it was bound for the Dumpster. All of it. Until Kyra Beamis said, hold on.
The general manager of the Coeur d'Alene Applebee's had a better idea.
"I asked them if we could have it, have a charity come in, donate it, raise money, have an auction," she said.
Absolutely. That's a deal.
That auction is set for 7:30 p.m. June 14. Booths, lamps, bar headers, TVs, glass partitions and more will go to make way for a sleeker, more modern, Applebee's.
And the charity?
The Windermere Foundation that last year alone donated nearly $40,000 to organizations that help children, women, families and other organizations representing education, community and veteran groups.
"The main thing is, every dime is going to be spent in our area," said Midge Smock, Windermere spokeswoman. "I'm excited."
Beamis said the restaurant will be closed June 20-23 for the remodel.
"It will be a different and new look in here," she said. "Completely new."
First, clear the way.
Up for bid will be a John Friesz Seahawks jersey, Pappy Boyington pictures and news stories and portraits of Elvis, Marilyn Monroe and James Dean.
An accordion, drums, baseball glove, firefighter's gear and golf clubs have to find a new home, too.
For the right price, you can own a slice of Coeur d'Alene's history.
"Everybody has their own sentimental stuff in here," Beamis said. "Everybody has their own thing they want."
Claudia Brennan, Windermere Realtor, said volunteers will be ready with screwdrivers to take down pictures and other items and present them to the highest bidders.
She said each wall of memorabilia will go up for bid, with the winner getting first choice. The bidding will continue until a wall is cleared, and then start again with more treasures across the room or around the corner.
"Some walls are going to command more attention than others," Brennan said.
The auction, that will include appetizers and a no-host bar, promises a memorable evening, organizers said.
"Everyone come, it's going to be a great party," Smock said.