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The crying of lot 21 set for Friday
The crying of lot 21 set for Friday
By Bill Walsh
Times-Democrat Staff Writer
The untimely death of Washington Redskins free safety Sean Taylor midway through the 2007 season inspired his teammates to a stirring late-season run to the playoffs.
Taylor is likely to inspire a pretty significant run to Lois on Friday.
Brooks Auction Transfer, LLC, located in half of the building still widely known locally as Hugo's and readily identified by the landmark roller skate at its entrance, will auction off the furnishings from Taylor's three-bedroom, three-level townhouse located near the Redskin's training facility in Ashburn.
The sale begins at 5 p.m., an hour earlier than the usual Friday night bidding.
"We do business with the insurance companies, and Mr. Taylor['s estate] had a claim through his insurance company, and we sold a couple of his items that had some water damage several months ago," Tom Brooks related last week. "An associate of the insurance company...recommended us through that sale," for this one.
The insurer didn't want publicity for that sale, Brooks said, which is not the case for Friday's auction.
The sale will, for the most part, be light on personal items, many of which went to Jackie Garcia, Taylor's longtime companion and the mother of his child, who just turned two.
Garcia "took some of the things for his daughter, so she would have something when she grew up," Brooks said, also noting that proceeds from the sale will go into the child's trust fund.
Some of the items do have Taylor's stamp on them, of course, including burgundy and gold couches from his media room, a glass-topped table with an etched black panther, and a 7-piece master bedroom suite that is distinctive in its design. The furniture, Brooks noted, is all high-quality.
The catalog also includes a pair of cufflinks, eight saltwater fishing poles and a spear gun, and a Dell computer
Brooks expects perhaps the most personal item, a package of pool balls, will sell well. Balls that would normally be striped are in the Dallas Cowboys colors. The solid balls are in the Redskins' burgundy and gold.
"They'll be a big seller," Brooks predicted. "They had to have been specially made for him."
There is no pool table being offered, but Taylor's pool cue will be up for bids.
Friday's sale will begin with some of the Taylor possessions before the action switches over to other consignors' items, "for fairness," Brooks said. Taylor's remaining items will be sold intermittently throughout the rest of the evening.
Fairness to buyers and sellers is a hallmark of the 11-year-old business, Brooks and his wife Joyce insist. There is significant competition, and auction houses that lack integrity don't last very long.
Neither do those auction house owners who aren't prepared to work hard.
"It's not an easy business," Brooks opined. "There is a lot of work involved. People come in on Friday and think these things just appear here, but they don't. I've got to touch every piece that comes through here."
For a typical Friday sale, that's about 800 individual items. Sales typically start at 6 p.m. and last until 10:30 or 11. Two auctioneers work the floor.
The venue is open to anyone who has something to sell — one piece or an entire household — and the Brooks operate on a straight 10 percent commission. For buyers' convenience, they accept all major credit and debit cards, checks and cash.
The Brooks maintain a list of 500 to 600 buyers whom they contact by e-mail on Thursdays with a rundown of what is being offered the following evening.
"That way, if you've got a lot of farm equipment, the farm equipment buyers will be here," Brooks said. "If you have a lot of antiques, the antique dealers will be here."
There is, Brooks said, "awesome interest," in Friday's sale.
"We expect a very good crowd, but we have plenty of parking, so that won't be a problem, and we will have some county officers out there directing traffic just to make sure everything goes smoothly," Brooks said.
The couple will sell the Taylor furnishings under the banner of "seller 21."
"That was his number on the field, so we gave it to him again," Brooks said.
"All of his things will be kept separate, and everyone will know that everything sold under number 21 was Sean Taylor's. We are going to put that on the bottom of the receipt, so [buyers] will have something to show that."
Taylor was killed last November when four intruders broke into his Palmetto Bay, Florida home, shooting and critically wounding the football standout when he confronted them. He died two days later.
"Auctions are a lot of fun, but because of what we are selling and that he passed away, it is not a big, happy event, but it is an event that has to be done," Brooks mused. "We are going to do the best we can and get as much money as we can for his daughter."
Brooks Auction Transfer LLC is located at 12099 Marsh Road in Bealeton, close to the Lois Volunteer Fire Company and behind the distinctive roller skate. You can't miss it.
Call (540) 439-7273 for more information.
Editor's note on the headline: The rapid-fire auctioneers spiel is sometimes referred to as "crying," other times as "calling."
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