Hundreds of people flocked to Coupeville Elementary School over the weekend hoping to score treasures at the annual Coupeville Lions Garage Sale.

Crowds waited anxiously prior to the start Saturday morning, zeroing in on items they found the day before.

At 9 a.m. the tape dropped and an air horn sounded, sparking a mad dash into the school.

Grown men, woman and children raced to claim their treasures.

Former Island County Commissioner and Oak Harbor resident Angie Homola attended the sale.

She managed to nab a sewing machine for her daughter, but missed out on some aluminum chairs she had eyed the day before.

She did walk away with some wooden chairs.

There were more than 20 sections of sale items ranging from tools, furniture to household wares, trinkets and even a boat.

Inside the school gym were most of the smaller items including decorative pieces, dishes, games, movies and books.

Lion Barb Vaughn, who is in charge of programs for the club, said different Lions are responsible for different sections.

Each Lion takes a section, sorts and prices each item.

At first, you don’t think you’re going to be able to do it all in time, but it always happens, she said.

The group rents the elementary school right after the school year ends and takes about a week to bring in the items and organize.

This is the club’s largest fundraiser of the year and usually nets between $30,000-$40,000 each year. All proceeds go back into the community through the Lions’ charitable projects.

Items are collected year-round through community donations and are held in multiple barns.

Any items leftover from the sale are reviewed to see if they can be sold online, donated to a thrift store or some items are disposed of.

To donate items for next year’s sale, call 360-678-4105. A Lion will make arrangements to come get the donation.