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DOWAGIAC — A local organization is gearing up to take to the greens for its annual fundraiser.

The Dowagiac Elks Lodge’s annual Guys and Dolls Charity Golf Outing will be hosted at 1 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 26 at Dowagiac Elks Golf Course, 300 Riverside Dr., Dowagiac.

The event was founded more than 20 years ago as a way to raise scholarship funds for high school seniors.

“It is a great way for the community to come together and support the students,” said Elks Inner Guard Susie Gendron.

Tickets for the event will cost $40, which covers golf, a golf cart and a steak dinner.

The golf tournament features a “four-man scramble” format, which is teams of four players competing against one another. In this format, each team’s players hit from the teebox, then the team members choose the best of the four shots for the next shot.

Unlike most golf tournaments, the attendee with the best score at the outing does not win. Instead, winners will be chosen at random by picking from a selection of cards.

Silent auction and business sponsorships included, the event raised more than $8,000 in 2019 and the lodge is hoping to surpass that total this year.

Giving back to the community has long been important to the lodge. Last year, the Elks donated a lodge-record $10,500 in grants to organizations. Because of its activity in the community and its donations to the Grand Lodge, every grant application submitted by the Dowagiac Elks last year was approved by the Elks National Foundation. The National Foundation encouraged lodges to focus on people and programs in need.

This year, the lodge donated $1,000 to Cass County Cancer Services and donated $1,500 to local charitable organization Saint Francis Outreach and has three more donations planned before the end of the year.

“We are here for the community,” Gendron said. “We are a social club but the community is our heart and soul. Giving back to the adults with disabilities, children and vets is our purpose. We are here to serve the community.”

Tickets can be purchased at the Elks Lodge during office hours, or by calling the lodge at (269) 782-3889.