THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, November 8, 1994 TAG: 9411080368
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY SARAH MISKIN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
Greenbrier Country Club members and guests have taken a swing for charity, with a golf tournament that raised $2,200 for the Joy Fund.
Although some golfers felt the weather last Tuesday was under par, about 100 showed enough iron to pay $50 each to play.
At the end of the round, golfers kept up the pace and raised $1,000 more, auctioning off rounds of golf at other clubs.
Greenbrier's head golf professional, Scott Oswald, says he knew the Joy Fund teed off in November, so he organized the tournament as a ``good deed.''
``Golfers are always looking for an excuse to come out and play,'' he said, ``so I thought a tournament for the Joy Fund would be a good idea.''
Oswald says he is haunted by the thought of some children having nothing for Christmas.
``I have this mental picture of some kids waking up where Christmas is `blah' and nothing special,'' he said. ``I am just trying to help out in my little way those who are not so fortunate.''
All children should have some enjoyment at Christmas, he said, ``even if it is just a little jacket or a board game like Monopoly.''
Because amateurs tend to look up to golf professionals, he was able to use his influence to organize the tournament. He called people he knew and asked them to get three buddies together to form foursomes. ``Basically, I was trying to do what I could to help those that needed the help,'' he said. ``I was doing my good deed, and it was fun to do.''
Golfers chipping in for charity had a variety of skill levels. ``Some were really good, some were not so good, and some were in between,'' Oswald said. Perhaps for some it was lucky the fee wasn't $1 a shot.
Oswald hopes to make the tournament an annual event and is eager for other businesses and corporations to keep the ball rolling.
``Maybe the Joy Fund this year could get up to $1 million,'' he said.
That's 20,000 individuals at $50 apiece or 5,000 foursomes, and $625,000 more than was raised last year.
``That's not so much,'' he said. ``If 50 or so businesses got things together and held events, they could raise the money in no time.''
Oswald says he admires the Joy Fund because it is a volunteer charity. ``All the money goes directly to the kids, unlike other charities where 90 percent goes to the kids and 10 percent goes to administration. The volunteer aspect is really important.''
Oswald already wants to hear from those who would like to take part in next year's tournament.
``I would like to see this thing get really big, big, big,'' he said. by CNB