We are thrilled to have DawnMarie Kotsonis back as emcee for this year's event! DawnMarie ignites the auction stage with her passion and heartfelt commitment to the organizations she serves.   

Her introduction to the world of charity auctions began in the 1980’s while running a successful commercial auction firm. She was asked to help raise funds on behalf of cystic fibrosis research—a very personal request as the disease later claimed the lives of both her nephew and her best friend. 

It did not take long for DawnMarie to realize that working on behalf of nonprofits was far more fulfilling than any commercial auction career would ever be, so she abandoned the commercial side and never looked back!  

In the ensuing years, DawnMarie was recruited to serve as Executive Director of a Southern California non-profit hospital foundation where she experienced first-hand the joys and challenges of fundraising from a new perspective and, unknowingly, began the building blocks of her true calling. Armed with these new insights, DawnMarie launched the expansion of her business service offerings to include a higher level of consulting that has helped take her clients’ fundraising efforts to new heights. 

DawnMarie has presided over countless record-breaking charity auctions nationwide including a number on The Wine Spectator’s Top 10.  The dollars she has raised are in the hundreds of millions, and the number grows every week.   

DawnMarie can be reached via email: dawnmarie@gavelgirl.com.