The golf outing has annually been one of the Lincolnway Special Recreation Association’s biggest fundraisers, and this year’s was shaping up to be no different.

The event, which was held 9:30 a.m. Friday, Aug. 11, took place at The Sanctuary Golf Course and featured lunch, a dinner buffet and raffle prizes.

LWSRA Executive Director Keith Wallace said it’s great to be able to host the 10th annual golf outing.

“We started it—actually, I was here for the very first one—we started a long time ago, and we just wanted to do a golf outing,” Wallace said. “It’s able to support some of our programming throughout the year, which is absolutely phenomenal. Our foundation [that] actually puts on this—the foundation golf outing for Lincolnway Special Recreation — they donate at least $30,000 a year.”

This time around, the event featured more than 50 raffle baskets for people to browse through and try their hand at winning.

“A lot of our families, they bring in a lot of baskets and a lot of donations through that,” Wallace said. “It’s a real community and family approach to it, which our families put in to help create the baskets and give us things throughout the year.

“We get over 50 donations a year from just different people. Even some of the golfers will donate baskets and things like that.”

Golfing at the event cost $130 per person and included a welcome gift, complimentary range and putting green use, golf cart, beverage cart on the course, lunch at the turn and a dinner reception. Golfers who sponsored a hole paid $600 for a foursome, the sponsor’s name appeared in the golf outing program and they received verbal recognition at dinner.

The outing featured a number of sponsorship opportunities for businesses to choose from, and rates started at $25.

“A lot of businesses came out to support us,” Wallace said. “They’re going to have a fun activity on the holes, so [the golfers are] going to have a real good time out there.”

Participants enjoyed competing in a scramble golf with a shotgun start at 11 a.m.

“We usually get some real good golfers who come in every year and get some good scores,” Wallace said. “We’ll see how it all pans out.”

This year’s event sold out and brought in 144 golfers.

“That’s our goal: to sell out,” Wallace said. “We like to have at least two or three sponsorships per hole, so that is going pretty well.”

LWSRA strives to provide services to residents of New Lenox, Frankfort, Mokena, Peotone, Wilmington and Manhattan. Proceeds go to help the organization and its ability to serve people with special needs.

“Between those six communities, we have a good pulse on the local businesses, the chambers and everything like that,” Wallace said. “We get a good turnout, so it’s really nice.”

Wallace said seeing the community’s support for LWSRA is amazing.

“It’s a real big fundraiser for us, and we’re very appreciative of everybody that helps out and makes it possible” he said.

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