Duncan Chalfant knows that topping last year’s Bids for Kids auction and fundraising dinner would be a sizable feat.

The event raised $78,000 for the Boys & Girls Club of Oak Harbor, not counting a $30,000 match from Island Thrift, and included a Russell Wilson-signed, commemorative Super Bowl football with a personal message to Oak Harbor fans that fetched $5,000.

Still, Chalfant never lowers the bar when it comes to expectations and the creative ideas that come with the Boys & Girls Club’s largest fundraising event of the year.

The dinner and silent auction, scheduled to start at 5:30 p.m. today at the Roller Barn, is taking on a “Garden and Getaways” theme for those who like to dig into their landscapes at home or get away for a mini-vacation.

There’s even another NFL football up for bid again, but this one’s signed by Seattle Seahawks linebacker K.J. Wright and doesn’t include a personal message.

“It’s not as special as Russell Wilson’s ‘to the Oak Harbor 12th man,’” said Chalfant, a Boys & Girls Club board member, referring to the message the Seahawks quarterback wrote on the ball last year.

“We do have two preseason tickets to go with it. That makes it a little sweeter. It’s getting harder to get tickets to a game.”

This year’s event will be more decked out with Mary Jo Lambert of Diamond Rentals providing decorations.

Once again, Gloria Carothers, owner of the Jewelry Gallery on Pioneer Way, is sponsoring the Diamonds in a Glass raffle in which an impressive piece of jewelry is awarded to one of 52 people who purchase a playing card that go for $150 apiece.

“It’s a huge ring,” said Nikki Barone, unit director at Oak Harbor’s Boys & Girls Club.

The jewelry raffle is the last event of a fun-filled evening that benefits the club, Barone said.

Part of the proceeds last year went toward the purchase of a new van earlier this year.

“It is our biggest fundraiser of the year by far,” Barone said.

Auction items this year include resort trips to Mexico and Lake Chelan, lots of items for gardeners and hotel and event packages in Seattle for the Taylor Swift concert and the Phantom of the Opera theater production.

Another auction item returning this year is a Downton Abbey-themed dinner for 16 hosted by the Goebel family in Oak Harbor on April 18.

The majority of the auction items are donated by community members, Chalfant said.

Tickets for the Bids for Kids dinner and auction are $65 at the door. The Roller Barn, which houses the Boys & Girls Club, is located at 98 NE Barron Drive.

“It’s a fun evening,” Chalfant said. “There are a lot of neat things and new things. The same as last year but with different twists.”