The day started with coffee provided by Starbucks and a putting contest on the green at beautiful Red Hill Country Club in Rancho Cucamonga. On September 20, 2021 supporters of the Children’s Foundation of America gathered for a day of purposeful play. The outing was most welcome after a year of continued lockdowns and closures in an effort to mitigate exposure to COVID 19 in California. This year’s event was more relaxed with the availability of a vaccine and lifted restrictions. Our team, however, continued to be overly cautious and kept all activities outdoors.

At 11 a.m., the exciting Helicopter Golf Ball Drop sponsored by AMC Modern IT commenced. Two golf balls landed in the hole giving us two winners for this year’s contest: Kevin Mink and Sharon Nagel. Both have committed to donating half back to the cause.

Kevin, who is also this year’s event chair, shared a few words and introduced Ron Pue, representing presenting sponsor, HUB International Insurance. The two kicked off the tournament filled with wonderful activities like golf challenges, tastings on the course, and a chance to win a car sponsored by Glendora Chevrolet. Sysco Riverside sponsored our swag bags filled with snacks and other conveniences for a warm, summer day, like baseball caps provided by Image Source.

After the tournament, guests were invited to an awards reception with dinner provided by In-N-Out Burger and live swing music by the Riverside Concert Band. A big thank you to VMA Communications for sponsoring the entertainment.

Next, we handed out trophies to our our tournament winners: Robert Woodman won our putting contest. First place went to Willie Buchanon, Pete Shaw, William Tucker, and Joseph Battaglia. Second place was Kevin Mink, Matthew Ringel, Chris Starling, and Jordan Craft. Third place went to Sin Ku, Joseph Chan, Michael Ofstedahl, and Adam Russell.

We gave out raffle prizes and conducted a live auction led by Willie Buchanon, a first-round draft pick for the Green Bay Packers and 7th overall pick. He later played for the San Diego Chargers, becoming a two-time Pro Bowl player. After finishing 11 years in the NFL, he was named to the Packers Hall of Fame and the San Diego Hall of Champions. Mr. Buchanon was a lot of fun and full of energy auctioning off incredible packages like a Vegas trip and tickets to upcoming Kings and Clippers games.

Through this fundraising event, the Children’s Foundation of America raised $125,000 benefiting children in need. These funds are essential in providing support to thousands of trauma-affected children so they may heal, learn, and thrive. From scholarships, to a chance to participate in sports and school activities, as well as tools for therapy for children who have experienced abuse, neglect, or abandonment — your help matters!

Thank you to everyone who participated in this year’s event. Every purchase of raffle tickets and player packages makes a significant and lasting difference. Thank you also to our incredible volunteers for putting on a truly fantastic event. See you all next year!

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Jenelle Phillips, Director of Development
Jenelle oversees the day-to-day operations and staffing of the Foundation, which includes event planning, volunteer coordination, community outreach, marketing and donor relations. Above all, Jenelle’s focus is to identify and access resources in order to help children heal, learn and thrive. She earned a bachelor’s degree in communications from California State University Fullerton and is very involved in the community. She is active in her church and owns an art gallery. Her volunteer contributions to the community have been recognized by Senator Portantino, Assemblymember Holden and the Claremont Village Marketing Group.

Photos by Allen Altchech