LAKEWOOD, Wash. (Feb. 22, 2011) — When pirates prod and cajole people to “raise their paddles” on March 26, it will be an opportunity for an expected crowd of several hundred guests to “surrender their booty” for American Lake Veterans Golf Course (ALVGC) and its campaign to build nine new holes for the wounded and disabled veterans who use that unique facility.
But why wait? “Surrender the Booty Bash 2” is under way. The Rotary Club of Parkland-Spanaway and their cohorts, the Seattle Seafair Pirates, a “seasoned crew of scallywags and swashbucklers,” are accepting “landlubbers” treasures now using convenient online donations: www.surrenderthebootybash.org/Raise.The.Paddle.html.
Not only has the Rotary Club of Parkland-Spanaway designated nearby American Lake Veterans Golf Course to be the beneficiary of funds from the Raise the Paddle segment of its annual auction, but those funds will be part of the Rotary Club’s pledge of $50,000 for the ALVGC fundraising campaign. In making that commitment, which it expects to complete within three years, the club will become the named sponsor of the 18th tee and tee marker, the finishing hole for the “new nine” designed by Jack Nicklaus.
“We are deeply honored by this generous donation,” said retired Maj. Gen. Edward L. Trobaugh, a volunteer at ALVGC and a member of the Rotary Club of Clover Park. Trobaugh is a member of the board of directors for the Friends of American Lake Veterans Golf Course, the nonprofit fundraising affiliate of the course.
Auction committee members Jay Peterson, a Tacoma architect, and his wife, Cindy, a business manager, conceived the pirate theme for the club’s 26th annual fundraising auction last year. It was the largest grossing event in the club’s 40-year history. The Petersons, who are overseeing the “paddle’ part of the auction, are optimistic of surpassing last year’s “booty” with help from their seafaring shipmates who label themselves the “Pirate Kings of the Northwest.”
The pirate theme continues this year with the promise of “fun, fellowship, bargains and surprises,” including the yet-to-be-identified celebrity who will walk the plank and risk being immersed in a dunk tank as soon as the first $5,000 is exceeded during the “Raise the Paddle” segment of the auction.
Peterson said guests are not likely to find Lady Gaga-inspired fashonistas or tuxedos at the March 26 bash. Instead, attendees are encouraged to outfit themselves in their flashiest pirate and buccaneer attire. The evening features a Caribbean infused dinner, provided by the Teen Chef’s program of the Boy’s and Girl’s Club/South Sound Chapter, signature rum drinks and an after party with dance music by Shelley and The Curves.
Event tickets cost $45 and may be reserved online at www.SurrenderTheBootyBash.org. The website also has details on sponsorship options and donation forms, as well as a secure link for “Raise the Paddle” donations for the veterans’ golf course.
About American Lake Veterans Golf Course (www.veterangolf.org)
This nine-hole course, built on Veterans Administration Hospital grounds in 1955, was on the brink of closure in 1995 when federal funds were eliminated for the operation and maintenance of all VA golf courses. The same year, an agreement was reached to allow volunteers to fund, maintain and operate ALVGC, which is located in Lakewood, Wash., near Tacoma and Seattle, and nearby Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Since then, approximately 200 dedicated volunteers, many of them retired military service members, have tended to virtually every aspect of maintaining and operating the treasured facility.
In 2004, a 501(c)3 tax-exempt non-profit corporation, the Friends of American Lake Veterans Golf Course, was established to assist volunteers with improvements, repairs, care, and maintenance of the course in order to better serve the needs of a growing influx of veterans returning from Afghanistan and Iraq. All nine holes at American Lake Veterans Golf Course are dedicated to valorous military medals, with tee box markers denoting the specific award for those heroes who have served and sacrificed.
In 2009, golf legend Jack Nicklaus and his firm, Nicklaus Design, donated services to design nine new holes, and the “Friends” launched a $4.5 million capital campaign to complete the nation’s only course designed specifically for the rehabilitation of wounded and disabled veterans.
Unified under the “Course in Courage” theme, the volunteers and donors share a goal of promoting the rehabilitation of disabled veterans through the healing power of golf, in an atmosphere of camaraderie that aids in the healing transition of their physical, mental and emotional challenges.
About the Rotary Club of Parkland-Spanaway www.psrotaryclub.org
The Rotary Club of Parkland-Spanaway, chartered in 1969, has been an active leader and participant in many major community projects and activities. Among the beneficiaries of their efforts are the Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound, Central Pierce County’s “Relay for Life,” the annual Courage Classic bicycle ride fundraiser for Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital, college scholarships for high school seniors in Bethel and Franklin Pierce School District’s, Family Renewal Shelter Crime Stoppers, family shelters and various food banks. The Club is part of Rotary District 5020, which encompasses Vancouver Island, B.C., and Western Washington from Pierce County south to Woodland including the Olympic Peninsula.
About the Seattle Seafair Pirates http://www.seafairpirates.org/
Founded in 1949 by members of the Washington State Press Club’s Ale & Quail Society, the Seafair Pirates joined community leaders in 1950 in creating Seattle’s first Seafair Festival. The 40-plus talented volunteers are selected by application and demonstrated ability to interact in a safe and entertaining way with the public. In addition to promoting Seafair and serving as goodwill ambassadors for the city of Seattle, the pirates travel extensively throughout the year to add some merriment to festivals and fundraisers. Additionally, they operate the Seafair Pirates Holiday Treasure Chest, a nonprofit organization that provides food and gift baskets to hundreds of local families.
Contact:
“Surrender the Booty Bash 2” auction of the Rotary Club of Parkland-Spanaway (Wash.)
Jay Peterson (at Erickson McGovern, Tacoma), (253) 531-0206
Friends of American Lake Veterans Golf Course Maj. Gen. Edward Trobaugh, Ret., (253) 279.3461
