The Rotary Club of Fox Chapel Area will hit the links for a good cause.
Members will host the annual Golf Classic fundraiser with proceeds benefiting two local charities: Aspinwall Meals on Wheels and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.
“Both groups have been serving the communities in the Fox Chapel Area School District for many years,” Rotary’s golf chairperson Jim Michaels said.
“Their volunteers serve meals plus provide companionship and help to people in need.”
The golf outing and its companion raffle are a major undertaking, bringing in more than $150,000 over the past five years.
This year, the scramble event will tee-off at 12:45 pm Sept. 19 at Hill Crest Country Club in Lower Burrell.
Cost per golfer is $150, which includes lunch, 18 holes of golf, a cart, on-course beverages, team and individual skill prizes and access to raffles and auctions. Anyone who wants to enjoy a lunch-only afternoon outing can pay $30.
The Rotary is hoping to bring in $30,000.
Founded in 1971, The Rotary Club of Fox Chapel Area is among 32,000 across the globe that are part of Rotary International. It boasts 1.2 million members who volunteer under the motto of “Service Above Self.”
Collectively, members have worked to provide clean water in Central America and helped raise money to eradicate polio.
Individually, clubs raise money to support causes like Meals on Wheels or the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry.
Aspinwall Meals on Wheels began serving home-cooked food in 1975 and has dished up more than 400,000 deliveries since then.
“At the core of their service is a nutritious meal, companionship and a friendly smile,” Michaels said.
Susan Glendenning, longtime cook at the Aspinwall food delivery service, said the Rotary help is significant.
“In this stressful time, with all the struggles with supplies and product prices, the decision to choose us is immensely important,” she said. “We are very, very grateful.”
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul serves the needs of people in the Fox Chapel Area School District. Volunteers visit hospital patients and residents in nursing homes. They also prepare and serve meals at two area homeless shelters.
Rotary member Tom Benic said the golf classic is the club’s biggest fundraiser of the year and that the 90+ members support it wholeheartedly.
Past Rotary Golf Classic beneficiaries have included Fox Families Care, the Cooper-Siegel Community Library, Circles of Sharpsburg, Backpacks for Hunger, Audubon Society of Western PA, Camp Guyasuta, St. Margaret Foundation, and the Fox Chapel Area High School Student Support Services.
While working hard to raise money, the golf outing is also a day full of fun – and competition.
The top prize in the companion raffle is golf for four, plus lunch, at the Pittsburgh Field Club.
Other prizes include a basket of wine, Steelers football tickets and a Sidney Crosby Penguins jersey.
For more, visit foxchapelrotary.com
Tawnya Panizzi is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Tawnya by email at [email protected] or via Twitter .