U.S. Oil Open raises $1,253,000

On Wednesday, 608 golfers gathered to raise funds to help people in the Fox Valley, Green Bay and Oshkosh regions who are struggling to meet their basic needs.

The participants, representing more than 250 businesses, organizations and foundations, golfed at four area courses: Mid Vallee Golf Course in De Pere, Countryside Golf Club in Kaukauna, and Wander Springs Golf Course in Greenleaf and Fox Valley Golf Club in Freedom, and then gathered for dinner at Van Abel’s Supper Club in Hollandtown.

All money raised at the event benefited the U.S. Oil Open Fund for Basic Needs established at the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation and the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation.

“We set our goal this year at $1,150,000, knowing that would be a stretch,” said Bill Schmidt, event founder and Chairman Emeritus of the Combined Locks based company. “Going into the day, I knew we would beat our goal. We received such a tremendous response from area business who came out to sponsor the event. Our success today is really a testament to the generosity right here in this community. We’re extremely grateful and very proud to host this event.”

Organizers of this one-day event hoped to raise $1,150,000 this year, a $150,000 increase over the 2007 total. In the past 23 years, the outing has raised $8,958,877. In that time, more than $5 million has been given in grants to nonprofit organizations in the Fox Valley and Green Bay regions.

Former Packers announcers Paul Hornung and Jim Irwin joined the group to pay tribute to long-time event participant and supporter, Max McGee.

“This is a great event,” said Marla McGee, Max’s oldest daughter. “My dad loved this event and the people he got to know here. I’m really honored to represent my family today and continue the legacy of my dad’s work to cure diabetes.”

Following her remarks to the crowd, Marla McGee was presented with a check for $100,000 for Children’s Hospital and Health System to support a $1.5 million campaign to raise funds for the Max McGee Clinical Research Chair for Juvenile Diabetes.

As the host of the U.S. Oil Open, U.S. Oil Co., Inc. pays for all of the expenses of the event. Every dollar contributed by participants and sponsors goes directly to the endowed funds established at the Fox Valley, Green Bay and Oshkosh Community Foundations.

The U.S. Oil Open Fund for Basic Needs makes grants to nonprofits working to help people struggling to secure basic life needs such as housing, health care, and job skills. Funds are managed by advisory committees at each of the Community Foundations, with 10 percent of the fund balance being given to nonprofit organizations in grants annually.

Highlights of the event included the announcement of the continuation of a grantmaking partnership between U.S. Oil Co., Inc. and the J.J. Keller Foundation, Inc. In fiscal year 2008, the J.J. Keller Foundation, Inc. matched the grantmaking dollars available through the U.S. Oil Open Fund for Basic Needs with a gift of $550,000. The partnership granted $1.5 million to nonprofits in May. Beginning this fall, the partnership expects to have $1.5 million available again for local nonprofits, thanks to a $750,000 contribution from the J.J. Keller Foundation, Inc.

“We couldn’t be more excited about this partnership,” said John Schmidt, President & CEO of U.S. Oil Co., Inc. “It has had an amazing impact on this event and the community. The Keller family is a group of generous people who truly want to make this community an even better place to live. We really hope that this partnership will inspire other businesses and families to create collaborations to address the needs of our community.”