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Business & Tech

Golf Tournament Benefits Greater Brandon Community Foundation

The Greater Brandon Community Foundation's annual Charity Golf Classic is the group's largest annual fundraiser, attracting some 120 golfers to Avila Golf & Country Club in Tampa.

Any time golfers can play a course like Avila in northern Hillsborough County on a picture-perfect Florida day you don’t have to ask them twice.

Throw in playing for a community charity, dinner and prizes and it doesn’t get much better.

Approximately 120 golfers, including former Tampa Bay area professional athletes Fred McGriff, Martin Gramatica and Daren Puppa, participated in the Ninth Annual Greater Brandon Community Foundation Charity Golf Classic on March 7.

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The tournament is the foundation’s largest annual fundraiser, which raises money for more than 50 local charities

Tim Sanders with Costco Marketing was one of the participants. This was his third tournament; the second time he’s played Avila.

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“It a great event, tremendous exposure for the foundation with the celebrities that attend it,” Sanders said. “It’s a great opportunity for local companies in Tampa like mine.  We raise quite a bit of money for the foundation, as well as the organizations the foundation helps out in the city of Brandon. ”

Tournament Director Rich Strehl said the foundation has raised approximately $1 million for local charities since its inception, with 70 percent of it coming from the tournament. It’s the largest of the foundation’s three major fundraisers during the year. AutoWay was this year’s title sponsor.  

Foundation member Debbie Meegan coordinated volunteers for the event. As executive director of the Brandon Outreach Clinic, which provides free medical services to people who don’t have insurance, her charity is one of many that benefits from the proceeds.

“It is harder to raise money now in this economy, but we did better than last year with more sponsors,” Meegan said.

Eligible charities must have a federal tax-exempt certificate and apply through the Greater Brandon Community Foundation.

For information, call: 813-689-6889.

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