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Greenville varsity baseball coach Duane Howe putts on the 18th green during the second annual Greenville High School Athletic Boosters Golf Outing fundraiser at Brookside Golf Course on Friday. — DN Photo | Meghan Tripp
GOWEN — Beautiful weather conditions and a massive crowd of people made for an exciting day on the fairways and greens of Brookside Golf Course Friday afternoon.
Carrying out the success of last year’s event, which originated from an idea during a boosters meeting only a year ago, the Greenville High School Athletic Boosters hosted their second annual golf outing fundraising event to raise money for their general funds.
This year’s edition of the event featured another crowd at max capacity with 42 four-person scramble teams in total, two more than last year, and about 160 golfers participating.
At the end of the day, the boosters nearly met last year’s fundraising total of $21,000 and raised $20,905 to go toward their student athletes.
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“The turnout was absolutely amazing,” booster president Cassy Mason said. “We had 164 players this year and we wished that we could have allowed more to join us. Our goal this year was to meet last year’s fundraising total or better and we were able to do that for our student athletes.”
“It was awesome,” booster treasurer Juliane Giles added. “We sold out three weeks before the event with every team paid in advance. We were more intentional about getting volunteers, which was a huge help because there are so many people and it’s busy. It allowed us as board members to mingle, play and be present to our guests and sponsors. We are beyond thankful to those that volunteered.”
With the overwhelming amount of success they had at last year’s inaugural event, the enthusiasm heading into this year’s fundraiser was unmatched.
“The atmosphere out on the course is just electric,” contributing board member Tiffany Burke said. “Everyone gets to relax, have fun with friends and enjoy a great day, all while supporting our student athletes.”
“I was really excited for the whole event, honestly,” booster social media director Kevin Howe mentioned. “It’s such an awesome experience to be a part of a community that supports our student athletes so much.”
Golfers started the day with lunch and had the opportunity to take part in many different raffles, silent auctions and contests, including longest drives, closest to the pin and a special prize for the best-dressed team. Some teams even went as far as to decorate their golf carts with specific themes.
New to this year, the Korson farm had a hobby horse activity set up at the turn where they would donate $5 for every person who participated back to the boosters.
“This year was a little easier because we had the foundation to build off from last year,” Mason said regarding the behind-the-scenes process. “We had a good list of contacts to reach out to for returning sponsorships and golfers. We did offer hot dogs at the turn this year to complement our lunch before tee off, being a long day on the course.”
“We had a lot of positive feedback from last year, so we truly just built on that,” Giles said.
In addition to the entry fees — which included green fees, carts and lunch — and prizes, businesses and organizations were able to sponsor the event through different sponsorship levels, including Jackets Unite, Go Gold, Go Purple, All In and Honorary Jacket.
The different levels ranged anywhere from $200 to $1,000 and had select benefits for each. In total, the boosters had 95 sponsors contribute to this year’s event with NuVu Fuels playing a major role in their sponsorship success.
“We are extremely excited that not only did NuVu Fuels sponsor this again this year, but they have made a long-term commitment for being the annual sponsor going forward,” Giles said. “They are really doing big things in our community and truly showing what it means to be the community behind the teams and we are beyond thankful for their partnership and support.”
As the board welcomes new members for the 2025-26 school year, they anticipate collaborating and come up with more unique fundraising ideas in the future. For now, they hope the community feels connected and motivated to help their student athletes be successful.
“It’s exciting to see so much support,” Burke said. “We really hope participants walk away with a strong sense of community because it’s a great opportunity to connect with our coaches, sponsors and fellow supporters in a professional but casual setting, too. We’re always looking for fun ways to engage the community and I’m already looking forward to what we’ll put together next year.”
“With gratitude, we extend our heartfelt thanks to our incredible community partners, dedicated community members and loyal Yellow Jacket fans for their unwavering support.
“We want to give a special thank you to Brian Zdanowski, Wayne Roedel, Shannon Ashley and Danelle Nauta. Your continued encouragement and commitment help us carry out our mission of promoting Greenville Athletics with pride and passion.”
