The other morning, we noticed the Coaster Cats were on top of The Raven's lift hill. They were performing the annual ritual of removing that year's flags.

And in the spring, they put up a lovely new set.

So what happens to the old, tattered flags?

We auction them!

Just about everyone seems to know someone on the East Coast who was affected by Hurricane/Superstorm Sandy. My folks live on the Connecticut side of Long Island Sound. Their electricity was out for four days. My dad was an Eagle Scout, so he considered it a challenge. " … but after Hurricane Irene last year, your mom asked me to tone down my enthusiasm for roughing it," he told me. They're both 82.

They were lucky, though; their greatest loss was three containers of raspberry sorbet which melted all over the kitchen floor on the third day. "You mother wondered who – or what – I had stuffed in the freezer," my dad quipped. Ah, you hearty New Englanders, you.

Adam's from the East Coast, too. He managed a trip home to help out his dad and brother's family. His texted reports back to me were sobering. People are suffering.

So when we received this year's flags from Raven, we decided to put together an eclectic collection of fun items from the park for a big online auction, with proceeds going to the Red Cross and their Sandy relief efforts.

In all, the auction includes a box of goodies, some new and some very used: four tickets for 2013, a 60th anniversary throw, a Legend patch from its inaugural year, commemorative ornaments, the park flags from our front gate, a visitors hard hat, and even a chunk of metal we saved from the old Santa Claus Land water tower.

Here's where to check out all the details of our HoliAuction.

By the way, our rookie Coaster Cat – Drew – isn't in training to be a Santa's helper …

… he was chosen to be the Flag Keeper that day so the coaster flags could be safely transported back down the lift hill to us.

I must admit, when I first saw the above photo, I wondered what the heck Ross was doing to poor Drew! No worries though, Drew just had the best jacket for flag carrying and Ross was adding to the collection.

Our HoliAuction, by the way, runs through noon Eastern Time (11am Central) on Tuesday, November 20. Please be generous!