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In 2008, the Kiwanis Club of Opelika and the Auburn Football Lettermen Club were at a crossroads of what to do with their annual Celebrity Golf Classic.
With the economy taking a turn for the worse and a handful of sponsors pulling out just weeks before, there was a thought to maybe stop having the golfing event they hosted for more than 15 years.
“We had to sit down and really evaluate whether we were going to continue this golf tournament in a bad economy,” said Lisa Beck, the Auburn University club’s administrative coordinator since 2004. “And the planning committee sat down and we carefully evaluated.”
The decision was made to keep going. There was just too much on the line to stop.
“We decided that it’s been a very successful golf tournament over the years, and no matter what, we needed to continue this tournament because, overall, we were providing support to so many need-based organizations,” Beck said Thursday at Saugahatchee Country Club during the kickoff luncheon for the event, which will be held there Oct. 14. “And so we decided to move forward with it, and we’re so glad we did because we’ve continued having very successful years since.”
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the event, which provides important funding to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes’ junior high and high school programs, as well as Camp ASCCA.
“Overall, what we’re able to do to help the nonprofits and so forth, it’s really wonderful,” Beck said. “In addition to the FCA and Camp ASCCA, a portion of the funds also go into the Opelika Kiwanis Children’s Charities Fund and then they disperse those funds to other child-based organizations in need.
“The Lettermen Club also receives a portion as well, and we support Auburn University scholarships with that.”
During Thursday’s kickoff luncheon, Allison Wetherbee from Camp ASCCA and Wayne Dickens and Chette Williams from FCA were the guest speakers.
Former Auburn football players and celebrities are also a part of the event, as each foursome will have a celebrity in its group for the tournament.
“It’s very Auburn-spirited,” Beck said. “Aubie’s out there (with) Auburn cheerleaders, and it’s a lot of excitement.”
Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. the day of the event, with lunch, which is provided by Outback Steakhouse, set for 11:30. The shotgun start is scheduled for 1 p.m. with a dinner, courtesy of Capitol Container, following the round.
Tournament sponsorships are still available. Interested parties may contact Beck at lisa@auflc.com or 334-705-5466.
Here is the tournament brochure!
Located in Alabama on Lake Martin, Camp ASCCA offers campers a wide variety of traditional recreational and educational activities with a unique design for accessibility.
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