Romany Brooks. Charity Auctioneer and Fundraiser

By working day, Romany Brooks is a successful mover and shaker in the heady world of city property sales. This vivacious chick could sell booze to a brewery and no doubt real estate giant Bresic Whitney in Sydney are pretty pleased that she’s on board. Her spare time is spent rolling up her sleeves and banging hammers in the name of charity and fundraising and there’s more than one that has benefited from her efforts. She’s full of life with unbridled enthusiasm, an infectious laugh and I couldn’t wait to tell the world about her.

“I was born in Tamworth NSW and I was raised in a home where doing something for others was the norm. My mum is what you might call a ‘charity queen’. She lives in the country and has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for a local breast cancer unit along with a massive commitment to Motor Neuron Disease from which one of her best friends died. “It costs nothing to be kind Romany” she is always saying.

I love doing Charity Auctions, it is incredibly rewarding to be able to make a difference to the cause. I pride myself on inspiring every last dollar out of a crowd for a good cause.

My favourite Auction was the very first LGBTIQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex and Questioning) event ever held at NSW Parliament House for Marriage Equality as part of the 2014 Mardi Gras Festival. I encouraged the donations of over $53,000 from a very supportive crowd with all sides of Politics attending. After this success I was asked to travel to Melbourne to perform the Auction for Marriage Equality at the Melbourne Town Hall.

As a member of the Bobby Goldsmith Fundraising Committee (BGF) Australia’s oldest HIV charity, established in 1984 by a dedicated group of Bobby’s friends. Our purpose is to deliver services that meet the current, changing and future needs of people living with HIV. I conduct two fabulous Auctions a year for them, one at the ever popular Bobby Goldsmith Bake Off and the other at our Gala evening where this year we auctioned a portrait painted on the night of The Honourable Michael Kirby.

I am often asked to do Auctions for friends raising money and am very happy to help. Most recently I assisted with The Lilias Project – filmmaker Jane Castle is raising money to fund a film about her mother Lilias a pre-feminist trailblazer and filmmaker.

Walk to Cure Cancer Auction in Camperdown for a group of women looking to raise money for their walk.

The Aurora Ball – The Aurora Group is a charity, raising funds to disburse to gay, lesbian and transgender community organisations. It is the fundraising organisation people choose when they want their money to benefit the community as a whole and not just one specific cause.

This was the biggest Auction I had ever conducted 500 people at the Sydney Town Hall….holding their attention was quite a challenge!

Volunteering for Birds of Passage to help feed the homeless in Woolloomooloo, Redfern and Pyrmont when possible”.