Westlake Mayor Hal McMillin has the typical southwestern Louisiana drawl of the people he represents, but he can switch to the musical, urgent chant of an auctioneer at a moment’s notice.

McMillin, 70, was captivated by auctioneers as a young child, but he didn’t pick up the profession until he was about 50. He’s since made up for lost time by using his talent to raise millions of dollars for causes he cares about.

“My drug of choice,” he said, “is a microphone and a crowd of people.”

Early impersonations to auctioneer academy

When McMillin was 7 or 8 years old, he went to auctions each Friday night with his parents.

“I liked doing impersonations,” McMillin said. “So I started impersonating the auctioneer, learning how to count and listen to him.”

The auctioneer, Dave Black, took Mc

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