America Supports You: Golfers Benefit Troop-Support Groups

America Supports You ^

[SandRat]

WASHINGTON, August 1, 2006 -- Golf enthusiasts put their skills on the line to benefit two troop-support programs during the “Birdies for the Brave” golf outing at Tournament Players Club Avenel, in Potomac, Md., July 27.

The event featured a morning golf clinic conducted by Birdies for the Brave founder and spokesman, reigning Masters champion Phil Mickelson, according to a Birdies for the Brave news release. During an afternoon reception, Mickelson thanked attendees for their participation and their donations to his effort to support the troops.

Mickelson has pledged to donate $100 for every birdie and $500 for every eagle he makes in PGA Tour tournament play this season to Birdies for the Brave. This is the second straight year Mickelson has made this pledge, the release said.

BearingPoint, a global management consulting, systems integration and managed-services company, hosted the event, which raised just over $13,000 for Mickelson’s program, Robin Lineberger, executive vice president for public services at BearingPoint, said.

That total included event registration fees, BearingPoint’s pledge to contribute $100 for each birdie and $500 for each eagle scored by all of the event’s participants, and an additional BearingPoint contribution, according to the release. Proceeds will benefit Homes for Our Troops and the Special Operations Warrior Foundation.

Homes for Our Troops assists injured servicemembers and their immediate families by adapting an existing home or building an adaptive home to suite their needs. Special Operations Warrior Foundation works to preserve the legacy of fallen special operations warriors by providing college educations for the families they leave behind.

John Gonsalves, founder and president of Homes for Our Troops, and retired Air Force Maj. Steven L. McLeary, executive director of Special Operations Warrior Foundation, were on hand to express their gratitude to the participants, as well. The two organizations are members of America Supports You, a nationwide Defense Department program highlighting grassroots and corporate efforts to support servicemembers.

Now in its second year, Birdies for the Brave -- or B4B -- has added an online component to the program. Golf fans can log onto the Birdies for the Brave Web site to track Mickelson’s birdies and eagle totals and the dollar amount pledged to date. Fans are encouraged to make donations online via the Web site. Links to America Supports You, Homes for Our Troops and the Special Operations Warrior Foundation are featured on the site.

BearingPoint and Calloway Golf, a golf equipment and accessories company, are two of Mickelson’s major sponsors. They also are two founding supporters of the Birdies for the Brave program.

Pentagon Press Secretary Eric Ruff (right) thanks pro golfer Phil Mickelson for his support of two America Supports You member organizations, Homes for our Troops and Special Operations Warrior Foundation, at a charity event July 27. The event raised more than $13,000 for Mickelson’s Birdies for the Brave program. Courtesy photo  '(Click photo for screen-resolution image);high-resolution image available.

Related Sites:
Birdies for the Brave
Homes for Our Troops
Special Operations Warrior Foundation

Pentagon Press Secretary Eric Ruff (far right) thanks John Gonsalves (left), founder and president of Homes for Our Troops, Mark Vayda of BearingPoint, and pro golfer Phil Mickelson at a July 27 event in which more than $13,000 was raised to benefit Mickelson’s Birdies for the Brave program. Birdies for the Brave benefits Homes for our Troops and the Special Operations Warrior Foundation. Courtesy photo   Download screen-resolution    Download high-resolution

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Teeing Up Fore Troops!