Nearly 250 Support Signature Event, Raising More Than $89,000
More than 250 golfers, supporters, students and employees gathered to participate in the College of Southern Maryland Foundation’s 26th Annual Golf Classic at the Swan Point Yacht and Country Club on Aug. 10.
Golfers hit the links while others participated in the Sip & Swing for an Impact, which included a series of golf clinics and an elegant wine and food pairing lunch. The event culminated in a dinner for all and the announcement of raffle and tournament winners.
The event raised more than $89,000 toward CSM academic and career training scholarships and the college’s athletic programs.
“This is the best in 26 years,” said CSM President Dr. Maureen Murphy at the end of the tournament. “The energy is incredible.” In addition to the Golf Classic, Murphy included the Sip & Swing, in play for its third year, and described both as “great CSM traditions, raising almost $1 million for our students and programs over the past 26 years.”
Reminders of the tournament’s purpose were everywhere at the event, with members of CSM’s volleyball, women’s and men’s soccer, softball, golf and baseball teams on-hand and working as volunteers at the event.
A CSM soccer player, Max Bode of Nanjemoy, shared his story during the dinner ceremony. Bode was adopted from a Russian orphanage when he was 2, becoming the sixth of what would be seven children in his family. He said that the chief roadblock to him attending college was the cost.
“When people tell me I can’t do something, that just inspires me to work harder to show them I can,” Bode said. “I know I have to work hard to accomplish my goals. But for me, the biggest obstacle to completing my degree is still finances. This spring, I was working four part-time jobs to save money for college.”
Bode has received several scholarships to attend CSM, a college that was attractive to him because of its affordability and its athletic program. “It’s people like you who support events like this that help raise scholarship funds for students like me,” he said. Bode plans to complete his associate degree in general studies at CSM this spring and transfer to finish his bachelor’s degree in sports management, all while continuing to hone his soccer skills.
Bode was one of four Marrick Homes CSM Foundation Golf Classic Scholarship awardees present at the tournament. Other awardees include Kiana Bopp of Chesapeake Beach (volleyball), Derek Taitano of Hollywood (baseball) and Savanna Pavkov of Clinton (softball). Marrick Homes has been the Golf Classic’s grand tournament sponsor for the past 16 years.
“We’re from Southern Maryland. CSM is the one common thread in all the counties we work in,” said Marrick Homes Partner Marvin Oursler. “It brings the next generation in that are going to be living and working in Southern Maryland.”
“It’s part of the community commitment,” said Marrick Homes Partner Rick Bailey. “You can only do so much with your resources. CSM mirrors where we work. Maybe our success can contribute to their success.”
For the eighth consecutive year at the Golf Classic, first-place honors in the tournament went to the team from McDonald & Eudy Printers Inc., Cas Dickerson, Kim Dickerson, Joe Bowling and Mike McDonald.
Second place went to the combined team of Raley Watts & O’Neill Insurance and Financial Services and Community Bank of the Chesapeake with Gordon O’Neill, Joe O’Neill, Joyce Riggs and Greg Cockerham.
The third-place team of Chris Stevens, Mike Leming, Dee Stevens and Anne Allen represented Clubtails.
Closest-to-the-pin contest winners were Josh Prichard and Dianne Proctor. Straightest-drive contest winners were Mitch Seifert and Shirley Bauer. Longest-drive contest winners were Bryan Bowser and Nancy Hempstead. Longest-putt contest winners were Alex O’Neill and Anne Allen.
“I want to especially thank this year’s tournament chair and CSM Foundation Director, Gary Simpson, who has worked incredibly hard with his committee including fellow foundation members and alums Linda Cox, Jay Lilly, Greg Cockerham, Jim Di Misa and Leah Estevez,” Murphy said.
In addition to Marrick Homes serving as the Grand Tournament Sponsor, the Southern Maryland Women’s League sponsored the Sip & Swing for an Impact.
This was the third year for the Sip & Swing event. “It’s so much fun,” said Margaret Sawyer of Piney Point, a representative from Old Line Bank. “It’s a fun day getting out of the office with like people, learning a little golf, drinking a little wine and supporting the college — all in one package.”
In addition to Marrick Homes’ support, other generous tournament sponsors include executive sponsor SONIC Drive-In of Southern Maryland.
Corporate sponsors are Educational Systems Federal Credit Union, Old Line Bank, Outdoor Creations Landscape Services Inc., Rotary Club of Charles County (La Plata) and Washington Gas – A WGL Company.
Mulligan sponsors are Community Bank of the Chesapeake, McDonald & Eudy Printers Inc., Partnership between Mid Atlantic Partners and Triumph Development, Quality Built Homes Inc. and Specialized Patterns in Training.
Community partner sponsors include Centric Business Systems, Chick-fil-A of La Plata, Coldwell Banker Jay Lilly Real Estate, Dale and Karen Smith Hupp, DRN Environmental Solutions, ECHO Realty, G.S. Proctor & Associates Inc., Grimm + Parker Architects, Joson Fine Jewelry and Home Boutique, Nancy Hempstead Occasions Boutique, The Rex, Simpson’s Olde Towne Insurance, Sky Zone Waldorf, SMECO and SoMDNews.com.
The Sip & Swing sponsor is the Southern Maryland Women’s League.
Food and beverage sponsors are Apple Spice Junction of La Plata, Bozick Distributors Inc., Chick-fil-A of La Plata, Clubtails, Rita’s of La Plata, SONIC Drive-In of Southern Maryland and Tommy and Ali Luginbill.
Contest sponsors are Bayside Auto Group, Buddy Sprague in honor of the Jack Love Sprague Scholarship, Clubtails, Community Bank of the Chesapeake, Educational Systems Federal Credit Union, Marrick Homes, Maureen Murphy and Joe McArdle, Pro Kitchen & Bath, Raley, Watts and O’Neill Insurance and Financial Services and University of Maryland Charles Regional Medical Center.
In-kind donations were provided by The Carousel, Evie and Vince Hungerford and Gary Simpson.
“I applaud every single one of you because without you and your generosity, this event would not be the signature classic event that it is, and we could not support our students the way we do,” Murphy said.
The CSM Foundation’s 27th Annual Golf Classic will be Aug. 9, 2018. Marrick Homes has pledged support for the event through 2019.
Photos from this year’s classic are available at http://csmphoto.zenfolio.com/2017golfclassic.
The CSM Foundation manages nearly 150 scholarships that help provide financial assistance for merit and for students in need. Scholarship categories include nursing, business, childcare, criminal justice, communications, fine arts, engineering hospitality, social sciences, teacher education and nuclear engineering technology as well as general studies programs. In addition, students can apply for scholarships geared toward cancer survivors, returning adults and veterans as well as for non-credit trades and continuing education programs.
CSM’s Impact Campaign is a transformative three-year outreach and fundraising effort that will culminate in 2018 with the college’s 60th anniversary. “Make Your Impact: Invest Today to Transform Tomorrow” addresses access, affordability and achievement by ensuring that degree programs and career training are available to everyone through scholarships, that high caliber programs, facilities and technology are accessible and that strategic partnerships and innovation are created and sustained in the community.
For information on the CSM Foundation or to make a contribution to scholarship funds, visit http://Foundation.csmd.edu. For information on the Impact campaign initiatives, naming opportunities and more, visit http://IMPACT.csmd.edu or call the CSM Foundation at 301-934-7649.