The 19th Annual
Links to Literacy
Golf Tournament
September 21, 2012 at Ko‘Olina Golf Club!
Good Fun and Great Fundraising for FLH
The 19th annual Links for Literacy fundraising golf tournament earned $125,000 for the Friends of the Library of Hawaii’s efforts to assist the Islands’ 50 public libraries and a lot of fun for the 65 participating teams (195 golfers total).
The event took place under blue skies and fair to gusty winds after a few days of rain. The greens at Ko Olina Golf Club were sleek and fast, challenging players who received awards in a variety of categories from straightest drive to best score.
Golf play was followed by a casual and lively banquet for 250 generously organized by the JW Marriott Ihiliani Resort & Spa and hilariously emceed by Kimo Kahoano. The first-place winning team received a getaway for each player at the Westin Moana Surfrider hotel.
Diners browsed among more than 200 silent auction items from lavish travel packages to homemade baskets of goodies.
The event was particularly memorable for the more than 30 volunteers. Asked what she’d done all day, volunteer Dianne Constantaras drawled, “Sat and watched little white balls fall out of the sky all day.” (She was a monitor at Hole No. 9, where a line drawn down the fairway tracked the straightest drive, a feat achieved by Chief Lee Wong.) Lucky for Dianne, who knows not one thing about golf, she was partners with golfer Gwen Omori. The two talked all day about everything from architecture to aspirations (Omori and her husband are trying to play a round in every state in the union before they hang up their clubs.) “We became friends,” said Constantaras.
Join the fun next year: Donate or create a silent auction item, volunteer for the tournament or banquet. Help make the 20th anniversary an even greater success. Email the office to be placed on the volunteer list for this and our annual booksale: Contact Us.
Article by: Allene Suemori & Wanda Adams
Important Links:
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2. Click here to view photos from the 2012 Links Tournament & Banquet: Photos from 2012
Mahalo to our 2012 sponsors . . .
Silver Sponsors
Anheuser-Busch Sales of Hawaii
Al Narimatsu of Merrill Lynch
Paradise Beverages Inc. – MillerCoors
Securitas Security Services, USA
Honolulu Disposal / Eco Feed
Carole Kai Charities, Inc.
Pacific Business News
The 19th annual Links to Literacy golf tournament by Friends of the Library of Hawai‘i is the second of our two major annual fundraisers. The 2012 Links to Literacy tournament will take place Friday, September 21, 2012 at Ko ‘Olina Golf Club with a shotgun start at 11:30 a.m. The fabulous banquet and silent auction following the tourney begin at 5:30 p.m. at the JW Marriott Ihilani Resort & Spa Pavillion. Many businesses in Hawai‘i and around the world donate fantastic items to be included as prizes or auction items.
The tournament consists of 72 teams of three players and is staffed by approximately 100 volunteers in what has become one of the premier non-profit golf tournaments in Hawai‘i. Businesses in Hawai‘i use this tournament to reward staff and valued customers, as well as to invite mainland contacts to enjoy a day of golf on one of Hawai‘i's top courses.
The proceeds from this tournament provide almost half of the FLH annual operating budget and go to the support and promotion of all 50 Hawai‘i State Public Libraries. The funds raised provide library enhancements not provided by the regular State budget. This includes: Summer, Fall, and Spring Reading Programs, National Library Week, supplies, continuing education grants, and scholarships for library science students. We also recognize the talent in our library system by selecting the Public Librarian of the Year and a recipient from library staff around the State for the Excellence in Service Award.
To attend this years tournament, in its 19th year, you must be a registered participant. In order to participate, you may purchase a team spot or volunteer.
If your team has already registered, please provide us with your player and banquet attendee information!
For more information contact us, email, or call our office at 536-4174.