The Tellico Village Ladies’ Golf Association 18 Hole League recently held a two-day charity tournament on Tuesday, June 18, and Tuesday, June 25, on the Kahite and Toqua golf courses.
The tournament saw around 70 participants each day come out and support raising funds for Our PLACE — a well-regarded local nonprofit organization.
“Thanks to the generosity of the whole group, we raised $7,000 for Our PLACE,” said event coordinator and chairman Nancy Johnson. “I have to give a shout out to the couple sponsors that provided attribution … Sloan’d of Vonore — along with everyone that ended up doing so much.”
TVLGA TRADITIONThe tournament has been a staple for the group for years and is something members look forward to.
“Every year we have a member/member event, which is basically a tournament between members where you pair up with a member and your scores kind of combine to count together in a tournament,” Johnson said. “We combined that this year with giveback day, which is where we select a charity that serves both Monroe and Loudoun counties because our league covers all Tellico Village and that’s (located) in both counties.”
During the two-day tournament, several TVLGA members had several opportunities to contribute to Our PLACE. Participants were able to contribute by cash and check while also enjoying 18 holes of golf.
Johnson said that over the course of the two days they sold raffle tickets which included golf lessons with a pro and other golf-related items.
The recent tournament marks the third time that Our PLACE was selected to be the main beneficiary of the tournament.
Our PLACE’s mission is to improve quality of life by providing a day program of care, social interaction and therapeutic activities in a safe and nurturing environment to senior adults living with Alzheimer’s or other dementia-related diseases. Our PLACE works to support caregivers and care partners through respite, support, education and resources.
‘WE ALL WORK TOGETHER’The two-day tournament was a success with Johnson explaining that there were little to no road bumps along the way. As Johnson is relatively new to the Village, having moved here in October, she relied on fellow Board members Dolores Franzen, Jean Clesen and Beth Hritz to make it a smooth process.
“We all work together … it certainly can’t be done by one person,” Johnson said. “I had a total of four people including myself on the committee. We started (planning) back in November, with selecting dates and things like that and we just met on a regular basis until the event started on June 18.”
The committee planned our every detail and were “proactive” to make sure that everything would go as planned.
Johnson also relied on fellow members’ combined experience to guide her through the busy tournament.
“The members on the committee had been through this event before and they were able to offer their experience,” Johnson said. “The pros and cons and the lessons they (have) learned throughout the years was very helpful,” Johnson said. “And then, of course, our league leadership (was key) … our President (Meri Coles) and Vice President (Jena Feil) had also done this before many times and so they were able to offer input, as well.”
MORE TO COMEWhile the recent charity fundraiser is one of the TVLGA’s biggest fundraisers of the year, their season and special events are far from over.
The TVLGA plays every Tuesday and operates as a regular weekly golfing league.
“One (upcoming event) is a member/guest event that comes in September, where you’re allowed to have a non-Tellico Village friend or golfer come in and be a partner,” Johnson said. “The member/member is strictly members of the league while the member/guest event coming up in September is where you can’t be part of the league or from Tellico Village at all.”
Johnson as well as several other TVLGA members hope that the funds will help Our PLACE expand and cover the cost of an ever-growing organization. Johnson said that giving back to the community is one of the biggest takeaways from any fundraising event they put on.
“I think that, personally, the most rewarding thing was the amount of money that everybody raised and the generosity of the league and sponsors and (just all) the willingness to help,” Johnson said. “Just recognizing what a great place that Our PLACE is and recognizing the needs they have (is important).”
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