Friday, June 21, 2024
The 2024 CASA Classic Golf Tournament, sponsored by Mike and Sara Dent and Wings, Pizza, N Things in Temple raised $60,000 to support the advocacy services that CASA provides to children in foster care in Bell and Coryell Counties.
The Dent Family presented a check for $60,000 to CASA board members and representatives on Thursday, June 6th and set a new record for a single donation to CASA. The gift represents the proceeds from the recent Fourth Annual CASA Classic Golf Tournament held on Monday, May 20, at Sammons Golf Course in Temple. The tournament attracted 188 golfers and more than 30 sponsors for the annual event.
In four years, Mike’s vision for a premier golf event in Central Texas has gone from a dream to reality, and the impact of the support has been noticeable. CASA has enjoyed setting records in new volunteers recruited and even added a new staff position in 2023 thanks to the proceeds from the tournament. The tournament has enabled CASA to serve more children over the past 3 years, which was the goal for creating the event according to Mike and Sara Dent.
Mike Dent stated “The reason we enjoy sponsoring this event is, because once I was introduced to CASA and learned that they existed, I knew it was something I needed to do. CASA did not exist when I was younger and having this tournament has really helped to educate people about what a valuable asset CASA volunteers are for children in foster care during a very difficult time. Each year this event has grown, and I know it is because people are moved to support CASA, because of what they do for the kids.”
CASA Board President, Lee Ann Deal, has a long history of service to CASA was overwhelmed at the donation and what it means to be able to serve more kids in the area. “Our CASA office is experiencing significant growth, and this funding will give us the ability to continue that trend by serving even more kids in need. Continued growth requires money to recruit new volunteers, train our advocates to be effective, and provide a supportive staff to keep our volunteers engaged. This donation provides a tremendous boost to our opportunity to provide even more direct services and support by our staff to the communities we serve” added Deal.
CASA’s goal is to serve every child in the foster care system in Bell and Coryell Counties. If you would like to learn more about becoming a CASA advocate, go to www.casabellcoryell.org or call the CASA office at (254)774-1881.
