Five Questions

 >>People with a passion for travel and some cash to spare might find some great deals April 16 at Wanderlust, a major fundraiser for Florida Gulf Coast University’s Resort and Hospitality Management program. Marking its 20th anniversary this year with a “Midas Touch” and a centerpiece package trip to Greece, the annual gala will feature live and silent auctions of travel and leisure packages largely contributed by those in the local hospitality industry. Rodger Church, president and owner of Eventz Inc., has been involved with Wanderlust for several years. This year, his company was tapped to organize and stage the entire gala.

1. Tell me about this year’s event.

It’s a travel-auction fundraiser. The live auction will have complete trips; for instance, we’re going to be auctioning a trip to Greece that includes airfare, trips, tours. There’s a silent auction in which we package together trips and different hospitality-related things, and you can buy balloons with things inside, like a [voucher for] a round of golf. We also have what we call a “fishbowl.” Sometimes that’s most fun because there’s just a plethora of different things; people will throw cash in there, gift certificates. If somebody is into travel, some of these trips are worth tens of thousands of dollars, and you can really get a pretty good deal on them. We have a Web site this year that we’ll put packages on as they come in (wanderlust.fgcu.edu).

2. So there are a variety of price points?

We try to keep it that way, so there’s something there for everybody. It’s not that you have to spend $5,000 on a week or two-week trip to Greece. There are a lot of small things too, like the balloons, and some of the silent auction packages go for very little.

3. Are all the auction items donated?