Charity tournament brings in $120,000
The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians has announced that its 13th annual Chumash Charity Golf Classic at Alisal River Course raised $120,000 for this year’s beneficiaries — five Santa Barbara County museums.
Proceeds from the two-day golf tournament, held Aug. 23-24, were distributed among the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, Santa Barbara Maritime Museum, Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum, Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum, and Wildling Museum of Art and Nature.
“These five museums, each in their own unique way, do an exceptional job of educating visitors about our area and sparking the curiosity in our youth,” said Kenneth Kahn, tribal chairman for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians.
“We’re aware of the valuable educational role museums play in our community, and we’re looking forward to the day when our Chumash Museum can inform the greater community about our tribe’s experience,” he said.
Each of the beneficiaries designated funds from the Chumash Charity Golf Classic for various projects.
The Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, 2559 Puesta Del Sol, which aims to inspire a thirst for discovery and a passion for the natural world, will use the funds raised from the Chumash Golf Classic to support its educational programs for children.
Luke J. Swetland, the museum’s president/CEO, said the programs offer a wide variety of ways to reconnect children with nature and learn more about the wonders of the world that surrounds us.
The Santa Barbara Maritime Museum, 113 Harbor Way, Suite 190, strives to inspire and educate the young people who will inherit the care of the Santa Barbara coastline.
Funds received from the Chumash Charity Golf Classic will support the museum’s youth education programs, which serve up to 8,000 youth annually.
One such offering is the Spirit of Dana Point Tall Ship Overnight Education Program, which gives fourth-graders studying California history the opportunity to live like a 1830’s sailor for one night.
The Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum, 705 S. McClelland St., aims to foster family and youth-inspired learning by creating experiences to “explore ourselves, our valley, our world and beyond.”
In its 21st year, the Discovery Museum currently serves more than 32,000 children and their families.
Proceeds from the tournament will help support the museum’s weekly education programs, such as Tuesday Tales, Preschool Patrol, Passport Thursday, Fit Friday, Science Saturday and Super Sunday.
The Wildling Museum of Art and Nature, 1511-B Mission Drive, Solvang, uses art as a tool to inspire the community and visitors to enjoy, value and conserve wildlife and natural areas.
Programs offered by The Wildling help visitors understand the environment and care for nature’s dwindling wilderness areas.
The Wildling will put funds raised by the Chumash Charity Golf Classic toward its ongoing campaign to purchase the museum’s current space on the corner of Mission Drive and Fifth Street.
The Santa Ynez Valley Historical Museum, 3596 Sagunto St., originally organized in 1961, celebrates the rich history of the Santa Ynez Valley, its pioneering settlers and the five early townships that formed the foundation of the region.
The museum is committed to creating a better future for the Santa Ynez Valley by inspiring generations to find wonder and meaning in the past. Proceeds from the golf tournament will be used for conserving, preserving and exhibiting the museum’s collection.
Since its inaugural event in 2005, the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians’ annual golf tournament has raised more than $1.3 million for local charities and nonprofits.
Past beneficiaries include the Teddy Bear Cancer Foundation, Dream Foundation, Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) of Santa Barbara County, Lompoc Family YMCA, Unity Shoppe, Friends of the Library of Santa Ynez Valley and Buellton Senior Center.
The Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians has donated more than $20 million to hundreds of groups, organizations and schools in the community and across the nation as part of the tribe’s long-standing tradition of giving.
To find out more about the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians Foundation and its giving programs, visit www.santaynezchumash.org.