Columbus, OH – On Aug. 15, the 2015 Champion Cares Golf Invitational welcomed 144 golfers to the NorthStar Golf Club of Sunbury, Ohio, in a tournament raising over $65,000 for four Central Ohio charities.

With an 11-year history as the Doc & Yeager Golf Invitational, the tournament’s new name came from a need to align with an accredited 501(c)3 organization, to be able to raise and donate more money than ever before.

“The move to align this tournament with the Champion Cares Foundation has allowed us to expand our reach farther than we had ever imagined,” said Brian Yeager, president and CEO of Champion, and one of the founders of the Doc & Yeager. “We were excited to reach just two charities last year, and now this year we were able to impact four with the most money we have ever raised in twelve years.”

Three charities, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio (BBBS), Children’s Hunger Alliance, and Columbus Children’s Charity each received $10,000 from the event, and this year’s featured organization, the YWCA Family Center, received a $20,000 donation. The remaining dollars raised will be put into the Champion Cares Foundation and donated to the Foundation’s charitable partners later this year.

During the awards ceremony, the CEOs of each charitable organization spoke about what these funds will help them accomplish in the coming year; The Columbus Children’s Charity will be able to help 3,000 children in its 2015 campaign, BBBS will be able to provide up to 10 more mentorships to Central Ohio’s youth, Children’s Hunger Alliance will be able to provide nutritious food to food-insecure children, and the YWCA Family Center will be able to provide 40 meals to the more than 50 families that it hosts on a daily basis.

“To hear each organization quantify how these funds will help them was really impactful,” Yeager said. “It makes this day so much more than a fun day of golf. It’s about truly making a difference in the Central Ohio community.”

The Champion Cares Foundation is the philanthropic initiative of Champion, the mission of which is to support people within the community who are in need with the help of the company’s business relationships, residents and team members.
“With the generous support of our 144 golfers and this year’s 43 sponsors, we are making a difference in the lives of people in need right here in our city,” Michelle Yeager-Thornton, co-founder and COO of Champion, said. “We think this is just the beginning of what we can accomplish with this partnership between the tournament and the Champion Cares Foundation.”

About Champion
Founded in 2010, Champion is a privately-held, multi-family real estate investment and management firm. Champion currently owns and manages nearly 5,000 apartments within Central Ohio, with 12 communities in the growing cities of Columbus (Easton), Delaware, Dublin, Hilliard, Lewis Center (Polaris), New Albany, Powell and Westerville. Champion has recently been recognized for its philanthropic efforts, receiving a Medical Mutual Pillar Award for Community Service and a Columbus Business First Corporate Caring Award in 2015.

About Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Ohio is a non-profit prevention-based agency that serves the community by providing quality mentoring relationships to children and youth in need of a friend. BBBS has a rich history of nurturing friendships between caring adult volunteers and promising children and youth. For more than 75 years, BBBS has served thousands of children and youth in Franklin, Delaware and Union counties through its mentoring and camping programs.

About Columbus Children’s Charity
Columbus Children’s Charity is a non-profit organization that opened in 2014. It’s mission is to reach out to sick and underprivileged children in Central Ohio. With support from the Central Ohio community, Columbus Children’s Charity is able to provide school supplies to children less fortunate, handmade cards to sick children and essential items to children in homeless shelters.

About Children’s Hunger Alliance
Children’s Hunger Alliance is the largest sponsor of home-based child care providers in Ohio, reimbursing them for the meals and snacks they serve to children. They increase easy access to nutritious food by helping guide school breakfast programs and assisting Ohio Summer Food Service sponsors in providing meals and snacks at summer feeding locations.

About The YWCA Family Center
The YWCA Family Center provides emergency shelter and critical services to stabilize homeless families in Central Ohio. A national model, its goal is to help families find housing within three weeks of entering the program.