Kiwanis tournament boosts scholarships

Posted 5/20/21

The Peoples Communication Kiwanis Golf Tournament benefitting the Quitman-Lake Fork Kiwanis Club’s scholarships and youth leadership programs was a huge success with 22 teams and $10,600 profit raised. 

The Quitman High School Key Club and the Quitman Junior High Builders Club are student-led organizations designed to teach service, community involvement and leadership skills. Some of the tournament funds will go toward supporting their service projects. 

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Kiwanis tournament boosts scholarships

Posted

The Peoples Communication Kiwanis Golf Tournament benefitting the Quitman-Lake Fork Kiwanis Club’s scholarships and youth leadership programs was a huge success with 22 teams and $10,600 profit raised. 

The Quitman High School Key Club and the Quitman Junior High Builders Club are student-led organizations designed to teach service, community involvement and leadership skills. Some of the tournament funds will go toward supporting their service projects. 

A majority of the tournament’s profits will be used for the Quitman-Lake Fork Kiwanis Club’s scholarship programs in Yantis and Quitman ISDs. The great success of this tournament led Club President JR Evans to suggest a change to the planned scholarship awards for this year.

“I feel like this is an opportunity to increase our impact and build a scholarship fund that will grow through the years” Evans said. 

In the past, the club budgeted for two $1,000 scholarships out of general funds. However, at the beginning of this year, Evans suggested earmarking the golf tournament profits for scholarships and the youth leadership programs. 

The overwhelming generosity of 158 donors, sponsors and players opened new scholarship opportunities. The club board held a special meeting and decided to increase their giving this year and in the future to $6,000 in awards annually, given as three scholarships each for $1,000 per year for two years. An investment fund will be started to hold the rest of the profit as a guarantee for future scholarships. This will ensure that the club can maintain this level of giving despite any fundraising hiccups such as the one suffered by most non-profits last year during the pandemic.

“It’s the board’s desire that each successful golf tournament going forward will grow this scholarship fund into an endowed fund,” said Club Secretary Joanne Wisdom. 

Evans stated, “It’s important to us for all our supporters to see that their donations make an immediate and lasting impact. We want them to know how much we appreciate them and are working to ensure those dollars are used to improve our communities.”  

The club wishes to extend a special thank you to Peoples Communication for their title sponsorship and Quitman True Value for donating over $4,000 in prizes. 

Tournament winners include 1st Place - Family Care Center team, 2nd Place - Seth’s Lake Fork Creek Steak and Seafood team, 3rd Place - J&T Bit team, Longest Drive (sponsored by Steve Straznicky’s Providential Insurance) - Jake Gorman, and Closest to the Pin (sponsored by Seth’s) - Eddie Stebbins.

Upcoming club events include Kiwanis Splash Pad clean-up and opening on May 29 at Quitman Hogg Park, Quitman City Pool free food and swim on Memorial Day, free hot dogs at Kid Fish on June 5 at Lake Fork SRA property, and bingo at Old Settlers Reunion in Hogg Park the first weekend in August. For more information monitor Facebook at facebook.com/qlfkiwanisclub.