ITF will Co-Host Golf Events in United States and Slovenia
The International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF) will host two golf tournaments in 2009 to raise funds to make the world a better and safer place for children to play, people to work, and communities to grow without the fear of landmines and unexploded ordnance. In partnership with the U.S. non-governmental organization, the Marshall Legacy Institute (MLI), the two “Legacy of Hope” events will benefit humanitarian mine action projects in four countries: Afghanistan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Serbia.
The Legacy of Hope event in the United States event will take place on March 9, 2009 at the Ojai Valley Inn and Spa in Ojai, California. The Spa recently was named as the top resort spa in the world by Travelogue Magazine and boasts a championship 18-hole golf course that, for many years, was on the PGA Champions Tour. ITF and MLI hosted the first Legacy of Hope golf tournament in Ojai in March of 2008 and realized over $150,000 in proceeds to benefit humanitarian mine action in Lebanon. Tournament organizers expect the participation of several members of the PGA Champions Tour, as well as some Hollywood celebrities. Movie actor Michael O’Keefe, who had his film debut as the caddy Danny Noonan in the movie Caddyshack, served as the 2008 Master of Ceremonies for the event’s dinner activities, and hopes to revive that role at the 2009 event in Ojai. Actors Malcolm McDowell and Meg Foster also have been invited. Dr. Joe Parent, author of Zen Golf and Zen Putting, again has agreed to conduct a clinic for golf participants. Dr. Anthony Lake, former National Security Advisor (under President Clinton) and Foreign Policy Advisor to the Obama Presidential Campaign, will be the speaker at the evening’s dinner. The ITF is working with a Ljubljana-based travel agency to arrange for participation by Slovenians at the U.S. event.
Slovenia’s Legacy of Hope event will be held at the Lake Bled Golf Resort on 9 September 2009. Lake Bled, of course, needs no introduction to those familiar with Slovenia. Simply put, it is one of the most beautiful spots on earth. The event at Lake Bled will also feature an evening dinner, at which notables from the Government likely will attend. Organizers of the Legacy of Hope in Slovenia are hoping to attract some professional golfers from the European circuit.
Both tournaments are looking for players and sponsors. There are several levels of sponsorships for each event.
Anyone interested in sponsoring, participating, or just general information about either event may contact Mojca Petrovcic, the ITF’s Director of Administration, at ljubljana@itf-fund.si or at 386 1 479 56 80. Readers in the United States may contact the U.S. tournament’s co-director, Pat Patierno, who also serves as the U.S. Advocate for the International Trust Fund. He may be contacted via email at dpatierno@cox.net.