Golf outing raises money for anti-poverty funding

from the Northwestern, Wisconsin

of The Northwestern

Nonprofit organizations in Oshkosh will soon benefit from a charity event that has generated hundreds of thousands of dollars in anti-poverty program funding in Appleton and Green Bay.

The U.S. Oil Open golf outing, has been raising money for basic needs assistance started in mid 1980s, but this year the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation is getting involved, through a partnership with U.S. Oil and the J.J. Keller Foundation, to generate funds for community programs that can help pull Oshkosh families out of poverty.

In its first year as a partner, the foundation hopes the golf outing will raise $250,000 to start the endowment fund, said Eileen Connolly-Keesler, executive director. Money is raised by donations from local businesses.

U.S. Oil Co., Inc. has committed to matching whatever is raised on the condition that 10 percent of funds be used for programs that help fight local poverty, said Sarah Schmidt, family president of US. Oil.

The J.J. Keller Foundation has agreed to match the 10 percent figure, which would result in $450,000 to start an endowment fund and $100,000 to fund poverty programs in the first year.

About 35,000 residents in the Oshkosh to Appleton area were living with incomes at or below the federal poverty level in 2006, according to the most recent estimate by the U.S. Census Bureau.

Connolly-Keesler said she hopes the fund will be more than just a band aid for poverty.

"We want to try to get to the root," she said. "We have poverty issues in Oshkosh and we have not had a fund that deals directly with these types of poverty issues so it's a great opportunity."

Schmidt said the goal this year is to raise $1.15 million between the community foundations of Oshkosh, Green Bay and the Fox Valley Region.

"Eileen has already secured around $180,000 (in donations) for Oshkosh and we want to raise $250,000 because we want to match that," Schmidt said. "We've committed to her that this is a three-year deal because we would like to build this fund aggressively in Oshkosh. The more we raise, the more we give away."

Marne Keller-Krikava, director of strategy and business planning as well as J.J. Keller board member, said she thinks the collaboration is very positive.

"What we saw as exciting was this regional effort in basic needs," she said. "Now that we have these three funds they will be able to work together, learn from each other and put money back into the community — the whole region."

Link to full article. May expire in future.