Lisa Oakley's eggs are not the kind you eat, but some people will pay nearly $900 for one.
What You Need To Know
Cedar Creek Gallery is auctioning off five glass-blown eggs to the highest bidders
Raffle tickets can be purchased for $10 to win a glass-blown egg
All proceeds from the egg hunt will go to the Food bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina
"We used to have a real adult egg hunt in the front yard, and we had plastic eggs filled with candy or tokens. If you found one that had the token then you got one of the eggs. We asked a participation fee and we gave it to the food bank," said Oakley, the owner of Cedar Creek Gallery.
Oakley is a glass blower. For the last decade, she has been creating glass blown eggs with unique designs and auctioning them off to raise money for the local food bank. The COVID-19 pandemic forced the egg hunt to go online, expanding to participants outside of North Carolina.
Food banks are seeing an increasing demand of people in need as the cost of groceries and gas prices soar.
"The Food Bank has been seeing a fairly consistent increase in need over pre-pandemic data, at about a 25-30% level. In the last two months or so, though, we are hearing from our partners on the frontlines that has gone up again to about a 40% increase over pre-pandemic levels," said Jessica Whichard, with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.
Oakley said the expanded reach allowed them to raise $20,000 for the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina.
"We are in a position to give back to the community, and I feel like if you're in that position that's what you should do," Oakley said.
Oakley grew up around crafts. Her parents were potters, who transitioned a tobacco farm into a pottery studio, Cedar Creek Gallery, in 1968. The gallery, located in Creedmoor, has grown to include representing over 250 artist from across the country and Canada, including local potters and glassblowers on the gallery grounds.
"It's become a lot more than just a pottery studio, it's not inside it's also the outside," Oakley said.
Bids are being accepted for the glass egg auction until April 10. The top five winners will be announced on April 11. The remaining 50 eggs will be given away through a raffle. Raffle tickets cost $10 per ticket.
Cedar Creek Gallery is also holding their 53rd Annual Spring Pottery & Glass Festival this weekend from 10 a.m. - 9 p.m. where visitors can purchase egg raffle tickets and place bids for the auction.