A day of golf, bingo, a draw down, a silent auction, food and entertainment — all while supporting a good cause — is set for Thursday.
The United Way of Leflore County will hold its third annual All-In Event at the Greenwood Country Club.
Courtney Kimmel, executive director of the United Way, said the All-In Event has been very successful for the nonprofit.
“We raised $51,000 last year, and our goal was $50,000,” she said.
The year before that, the United Way raised $47,000.
The goal for this year is again $50,000.
“That helps us make our budget,” said Kimmel.
Cannon Motors of Mississippi is the All-In Event’s title sponsor.
“We are grateful to them and all of our sponsors for supporting the United Way,” said Kimmel.
The United Way of Leflore County supports 12 local non-profits, including ArtPlace Mississippi, Beacon Harbor, Boy Scouts of America, Boys and Girls Club, Delta Grace, Community Food Pantry, Girl Scouts Heart of the South, Greenwood Interfaith Ministries Community Kitchen, Fuller Center for Housing, Leflore County 4-H clubs, Leflore County Humane Society and The Salvation Army.
“The United Way is proud to support our 12 local non-profit groups,” said Tim Stanciel, president of United Way. “We appreciate all our sponsors, silent auction donors, board members and community volunteers that help to make this event possible. Without their support, United Way wouldn’t be able to help fund the nonprofits that make a huge impact in our community.”
Kimmel said the event is vital to the United Way, which is “proud to be able to help provide funds” for 12 organizations that are all important to the Greenwood community.
“The All-In Event is our main fundraising event of the year, and we depend on its success to allocate funds to these 12 agencies each year.”
A golf tournament will kick off the event at noon. All 18 golf teams have registered and been filled by local sponsors.
Multiple prizes will be awarded, such as Longest Drive, Shortest Drive, Closest to the Pin, Hole-In-One, Most Accurate Drive and a putting contest.
Bingo will be held from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. inside the Greenwood Country Club. The event will include appetizers and eight games, which will feature prizes of three $25 gift cards to Station 222, one gift card for two Larry’s Catfish buffets, one $25 gift card to Drake’s BBQ, two $25 Serio’s gift cards and one Sonic Drive-In gift card. The games will be called by Lisa Cookston.
The silent auction, draw down, entertainment, food and drinks will be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Tickets will be sold at the door for $25 each, which includes one free drink and food. A cash bar will also be available.
“This is a fantastic event for everyone to attend,” said Michael Naaman, vice president of United Way. “We appreciate your support as all of the money we raise stays here in our community.”
The silent auction will feature more than 100 items, including paintings by local artists, a .22 semi-automatic pistol, tools, a baseball signed by the 2018 Mississippi State College World Series team, a football and helmet signed by Bobby Bowden and much more.
“We are really excited about the silent auction this year,” said Kimmel. “We have created a lot of great packages such as the ‘First Date,’ ‘Let’s Do Lunch’ and ‘Mama’s Day Out.’ These packages and all our silent auction items are made possible by local retailers that give generously to the United Way. We encourage everyone to shop local and support the businesses that help make our community a better place to live.”
The packages are fun combinations of gift certificates, such as the “Get Fat Then Fit” package, which includes a $25 Honest Abe’s Donuts gift card and a three-month membership to the Greenwood Leflore Hospital Wellness Center, or the “First Date” package, which includes a Sonicare toothbrush from Stuckey Family Dentistry, a $50 Fresh Laundry gift card, a $50 Crystal Grill gift card and two bottles of wine from Riverfront Liquors.
“We were just trying to be fun and creative and offer something different to bid on while still showcasing all of our local retailers,” said Kimmel.
The draw down will start at 6:30 p.m. The grand prize is $5,000 with eight additional prizes given throughout the draw down, including five $25 gift cards to Conerly’s, one gift card for two Larry’s Catfish buffets, one $25 gift card to Station 222 and one $50 gift card to The Landing.
Draw down tickets are $100 each and include admission to the event. Those who do not purchase a draw down ticket pay a $25 admission fee. There’s no additional charge to play bingo.
Kimmel said the United Way Board of Directors and volunteers are “All-In” in “our commitment to serve and help fund our 12 local agencies and those agencies are ‘All-In’ in their commitment to make an impact in our community through the programs and services they offer.”
“This event is ‘All-In’ as a one-day fundraiser with multiple ways for the community to do its part in helping us fund these local agencies and make Greenwood a better place to live,” she said.
For more information or to purchase a draw down ticket, contact Kimmel at 453-1910 or 392-3036 or email uwoflc@yahoo.com.
• Contact Ruthie Robison at 581-7233 or rrobison@gwcommonwealth.com.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Thursday
Noon Golf tournament
4:30-5:30 p.m. Bingo
5:30-8 p.m. Silent auction, food, drinks and entertainment
6:30 p.m. Draw down begins
• The event will be held at Greenwood Country Club. Entrance tickets are $25 at the door. Draw down tickets are $100 each and include entrance to the event. For more information or to purchase a draw down ticket, contact the United Way by phone at 453-1910 or by email at uwoflc@yahoo.com.
