First Posted: 10/14/2014

Whether she’s painting Santa Claus on candlesticks or pet portraits on a saw blade, artist Tina Urban, of Harveys Lake, likes to add a bit of whimsy to her work.

“I’m kind of known for my little critters, bunnies and mice,” she said.

So the child’s rocker she plans to paint for a Junior Achievement of Northeastern Pennsylvania fund-raiser called A Chair Affair will sport a tooth-fairy theme, complete with cute little teeth on the seat.

As for the adult-size chair she recently finished decorating for the same auction, the seat appears to be woven but if you touch it, you’ll know it’s wood. Urban’s paintbrushtricked the eye.

And the grape leaves she painted on the legs and back of the chair hint at the extra prize the top bidder will receive along with that chair – a gift of wine.

All sorts of chairs will be on the auction block during the fund-raiser, set for 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 6 at Junior Achievement’s Mericle Family Center for Enterprise Education.

“It’s a cool and different way to present prizes,” said Suzanne McCabe, program and development manager for JA, who expects a donated pearl necklace may be paired with a delicate doll-size chair while a full-size chair could be covered in gift certificates to various local restaurants.

Contemporary chairs, traditional chairs and recliners are part of the line-up, and some will be accompanied by items as diverse as orchestra and ballet tickets, a round of golf, a visit to a spa, $400 worth of diapers from Procter & Gamble and an autographed baseball from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton RailRiders.

The special-needs artists from the Verve Vertu Studio in Dallas also are painting a chair, McCabe said. “I’m really eager to see it. They said it will have a cat theme.”

Junior Achievement of Northeastern Pennsylvania Inc. sends business professionals, retirees and college students into area schools to help young people learn financial literacy and work readiness, president Melissa Turlip said. School groups are also welcome to visit the Junior Achievement facility in Pittston, where they can practice being entrepreneurs.

Tickets to A Chair Affair are $35. For more information, call 570-602-3600 or email smccabe@janepa.org for more information.