BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP
Staff Writer

SCOTT PILLING staff David Grecsek sends the ball flying during the 2006 Redbird Golf Classic held at the Cream Ridge Golf Club in Upper Freehold on Aug. 18. ALLENTOWN - The first-ever Redbird Golf Classic helped raise more than $13,000 for three community organizations.

Held on Aug. 18 under perfect playing conditions at the Cream Ridge Golf Club in Upper Freehold, the golf outing was sponsored by Reed's Sod Farm and the AHSpga Foundation.

The AHSpga Foundation is a parent organization formed to lend financial and promotional support to the Allentown High School (AHS) Golf team and its alumni.

"Every dollar raised through the works of this foundation will go directly to the benefit of the AHS golf team and when requested and approved by the governing board, the student-athletes and the educational and cultural organizations that encompass the Upper Freehold Regional School District," said Bruce Novozinsky, the chairman of the AHSpga Foundation.

The golf classic helped the AHSpga Foundation raise over $13,000 for Allentown High School's Athletic Department to improve its athletic fields. In addition, the event also collected $1,087 for the Give Back Foundation, which is a local nonprofit that helps families in need, and $1,000 for the Allentown Public Library.

Novozinsky deemed the outing a "resounding success" and commented that "every aspect of the event exceeded goals and expectations."

"To me the money was a great outpouring of local business and families concerns for the conditions of our fields at the school," Novozinsky said. "The AHSpga is proud to be a small part of that."

Novozinsky said the Redbird Golf Classic's organization committee had concerns when drawing up the event and setting the financial benchmarks in June.

"I think the primary concern was that we were just coming off of a large-scale golf event in April and worried about going back to the community and sponsors in short order," Novozinsky said.

He said the committee's concerns were quickly laid to rest. Brian Irwin, the athletic director at AHS, the athletic department's team leaders and other staff came through for the event "in every way," he said.

"Irwin was turning people away for volunteer work once word started getting out about the magnitude of the outing and its impact on the community at large," Novozinsky said.

Because of the overwhelming support the event received in its initial stages, Irwin and Novozinsky agreed that it would be an opportunity for student-athletes to give back to the towns that support their regional school district. That's why the organizers decided to select two other worthy organizations to share in the day's profits.

Irwin selected the Allentown Public Library and Bill Morris recommended Ivan Olinsky's Give Back Foundation, according to Novozinsky.

"Public libraries are such a staple in our small towns, but are now often overlooked because of the technology and the quick-hit research capabilities we have in our homes and offices," Novozinsky said. "But these are people who keep their doors open late at night for meetings and serve as a vital archive for our town's history. We need to make sure that they stay supported and open."

According to Roxanne Robinson, treasurer of the Allentown Public Library Association, each year the association must raise approximately $50,000 for the building's operating costs.

In 2006, the municipalities of Allentown, Upper Freehold and Millstone provided $12,000 of these funds and the library board has to raise the rest. Robinson said the donation from the AHSpga will help the board make up part of the deficit this year.

The Give Back Foundation was formed in memory of Olinsky's daughter, Michelle McAleer, who passed away at the age of 29 in March 2000 from complications due to a rare form of cancer called hepatocellular carcinoma, according to Novozinsky.

The Give Back Foundation supports local families that have life-altering situations.

"This is just good work being done by good people," Novozinsky said.

When Novozinsky's wife, Maureen, presented the Give Back Foundation with a check from the AHSpga, she said, "We are all enriched by having them as neighbors."

The field of 144 players enjoyed a smooth transition from event to event throughout the day of the classic. The course offered close to $50,000 worth of prizes ranging from digital cameras to a new Hamilton Chrysler 300c vehicle.

Hamilton Chrysler's general manager, Richard Suta, of Allentown, who played in the event, said he wanted someone to walk off the course with the car.

Although Suta never got to give the car away because none of the players got a hole-in-one in the designated hole, Novozinsky said AHS varsity golf team members had a great time holding on to the keys to the car, which were secured in their procession the evening before and the day of the outing.

The highlight of the entire event, according to Novozinsky, was "no question, the kids' participation."

Novozinsky said student-athletes announced the winners of the day and spoke on behalf of themselves.

"It made the entire process worth the efforts," he said, "to see the kids play a major role in this day knowing that the money being raised would not be going toward flashy new uniforms and updated equipment, but rather [toward] water and seed for the fields - things that are often taken for granted."

He continued, "The pride in themselves and the parents that attended the luncheon afterward came through, and that's what I'll be taking away from the day."

As far as the day's winners, Upper Freehold Township Committeeman Steve Alexander won the men's competition called Closest to the Pin. Willie Wang and Patty Hogan won Longest Drive. Olde York members Brian Stagnetti and Linda Weise took Straightest Drive honors, according to Novozinsky.

"The overall winners of the day, shooting 60 in scramble format, were Jamie Savedoff, Joe Fidler, Frank Tourine and Mike Bassler, who is an NCAA Division I golf recruit to Loyola University in Maryland," he said.

Throughout the day, the event had a few competitions that raked in the most donations, according to Novozinsky.

"The big money-puller for the day belonged to the selling skills of Margaret Morris, who brought in over $500 at the chipping contest and her husband, Bill, who was a major support throughout the entire process and active member of the AHSpga," Novozinsky said.

The golf club's professional team of Brian Snyder and Bill Marine brought in more than $400 at the 13th hole Beat-the-Pro competition. Also, a donation of an Olde York CC foursome from Linda and Rich Weise accounted for more than $600 in a hard-fought auction won by Joan Ruddiman, he said.

Novozinsky raved about the hospitality of the management at the Cream Ridge Golf Course.

"Bill Miscoski, Bill Marine and Brian Snyder showed the same professionalism that has come out of that 539 intersection since the 1950s," Novozinsky said.

He also commented on the generosity of all the volunteers at the event. He said that there were so many volunteers that "the day just ran itself."

Novozinsky praised golf alumni parents Jean and John Petersen, Chris Cadigan, Dominic and Joe Colletti, Angela Whittholt, owner and founder of CPA-411, and Kim Villani, who offered her professional photography skills pro bono for the event.

Novozinsky said that the Allentown High School's varsity golf team and its coach, Doug Hunt, have several initiatives planned for the 2007. He said the team will take a trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C., for the annual Palmetto High School Championships and will work in a big brother-type capacity for kids who have a desire to play the game but do not have the proper means to do so.

The AHSpga is not associated with the Upper Freehold Regional School District or its employees in any way, Novozinsky said.