LEESBURG – Children from three Kosciusko County school corporations will benefit from a golf outing June 17 at Tippecanoe Lake Country Club. And the lucky golfer who makes a hole-in-one on Hole 13 will win a 2013 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Sport 4x4, provided by Warsaw GMC/Buick Autoplex. So far this season, two people have already made holes-in-one at that hole. Money raised from the First Annual Boomerang Backpacks Golf Outing goes to support the Boomerang programs at Warsaw, Wawasee and Tippecanoe Valley. Boomerang Backpacks is a free weekend food distribution program during the school year that provides students enrolled in free/reduced lunch programs a pack filled with healthy foods for the weekend. Its mission is “To nourish low-income elementary students on weekends by providing backpacks full of food, and to inspire high school students to experience community service through project-based learning and student internships.” According to Warsaw Community Schools Boomerang Backpacks coordinator Tracey Akers, “We’re trying to feed our hungry students during the school year. We’ve been successful so far. We’re trying to expand it in all the elementary schools.” The program currently is at both Tippecanoe Valley elementaries, three schools at Wawasee and two at Warsaw. Akers said they want to increase Warsaw’s to four for the 2013-14 school year. It takes $100 to feed one child for one school year. Valley has 150 students in the program, while Wawasee has 300 and Warsaw has 150. Warsaw just completed its first year of the program, while Wawasee finished its second and Valley its fourth. Kirk Doehrmann, Tippecanoe Valley High School principal, said the program started at Valley as part of his Kosciusko Leadership Academy team’s White Paper Project. He was originally told about the program by Mark Cockroft, East Noble Schools, who was instrumental in getting Valley’s program and the golf outing started. Warsaw Community High School 2013 graduates Connor Singrey and Alek Jansen made the Boomerang Backpacks their Kosciusko Youth Leadership Academy project last school year in conjunction with Akers. Akers said Doehrmann and Connie Geer, Wawasee’s program coordinator, were instrumental in helping Warsaw start up its program. Shotgun start for the golf outing is at 8 a.m. June 17 at Tippecanoe Lake Country Club, 7245 N. Kalorama Road, Leesburg. The cost is $400 for a team of four, and includes lunch and greens fees. PayProMedia is sponsoring the lunch. Currently, 17 teams have signed up, but organizers are hoping for 25 teams. Akers said there also will be a 50/50 raffle during the event. More sponsorships are being sought. Hole sponsors are $100. Silver Level sponsors are $500, which includes hole sponsor and complimentary fee for one foursome. Gold level sponsors are $1,000 and includes two hole sponsors and complimentary fee for two foursomes. Platinum sponsors are $2,500 and includes banner at event and complimentary fee for four foursomes. Presenting sponsors are $5,000. Akers also noted that golf pro Matt Funkhouser gave Boomerang Backpacks a “really good deal so we could make as much money on this as possible.” For more information, contact Mark Cockroft at 260-413-2507 or mark.cockroft@boomerangbackpacks.org; or Gary Furlow at 260-349-8970 or g_t_furlow@hotmail.com For more information about Boomerang Backpacks, visit the website at www.boomerangbackpacks.org
