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The Peter Pedroni Memorial Charity Golf Tournament Returns to the High Country on Aug. 17, Openings for a Few More Participants

By Katie Benfield 

On Thursday, August 17, starting at 2 p.m., Casa Rustica Restaurant & Catering and Fairway Café , along with High Country Caregiver Foundation, will present the Peter Pedroni Memorial Charity Golf Tournament at the Boone Golf Club.

This golf tournament is geared towards raising money for the High Country Caregiver Foundation, a local nonprofit that strives to provide support and assistance to family and kinship caregivers in Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Mitchell, Watauga, Wilkes and Yancey counties. The organization’s mission is to improve the quality of life of caregivers and those they care for alike through advocacy, information, resources, emotional support and other assistance.

“It’s pretty much the only program around here that supports family caregivers, “ Brenda Reece, Director of the High Country Caregiver Foundation, said. “Everyone is either going to be a caregiver or need a caregiver at some point. This is something that will affect all of us.”

The types of family caregivers that HCCGF focuses on are those such as a daughter taking care of her parents or a husband caring for his wife. Along with this, the nonprofit also supports and provides resources for family caregivers, such as grandparents raising a grandchild.

According to Reece, the community has been incredibly supportive of the HCCGF, and that includes Rick and Liz Pedroni of Casa Rustica.

“Rick and Liz are incredible. We are very fortunate to have them support us, and they have raised close to $80,000 for our foundation,” Reece said. “They really want to help and support the community in so many ways.”

In years previous, the Pedronis were the ones in charge of hosting the Charity Golf Tournament – once called the Casa Rustica Charity Golf Tournament and which was renamed in memorial of Peter Pedroni, Rick’s father, after he passed away.

This year, Rick and Liz Pedroni are passing the Golf Tournament off to the HCCGF. However, that doesn’t mean that they aren’t involved. Liz Pedroni, according to Reece, is on the board of the HCCGF and both she and Rick are still heavily involved in the planning and organization of the event.

“They will be doing the food and organizing the event, and the High Country Caregiver Foundation is easing into it,” Reece said. “They are still very involved.”

Although the proceeds from the Golf Tournament go towards the High Country Caregiver Foundation, the money raised could go to any of the seven counties that the HCCGF serves.

“We do hold events in each of the seven counties, and the money raised from those events go towards that specific county,” Reece said. “However, we then have regional events, like the Golf Tournament, where we raise money and that money can go to any or all of the seven counties, based on what is needed in the counties throughout our region. “

While the Golf Tournament is a fundraising event geared toward supporting a local nonprofit, it is also a wonderful opportunity to come out and have a great time with other community members.

There will be several activities and events throughout the entire tournament, including a $10,000 hole-in-one contest, raffles, goody bags, prizes and more.

“For the raffles and auctions, we usually have tickets to local attractions and other fun places, like the NASCAR Hall of Fame and sporting events,” Reece said. “It’s really a community effort, and we are so thankful to other businesses in our community that are supporting us by donating items for the event.”

Along with these donations, it is also possible for businesses to become sponsors for the event.

“We have hole sponsorships which means that businesses can have their name displayed on a yard sign at a particular hole,” Reece said. “We are so thankful and grateful to Rick, Liz and the community because their donations, support and sponsorships are what keep us going. This community is phenomenal.”

The entry fee for those wanting to participate is $135, and that covers the greens and carts fees, mulligans, lunch and the prior night’s prime rib dinner.

The shot gun start is at 2 p.m. the day of, and registration for the event closes on Aug. 16

To register to participate in the event or become a sponsor of the event, go to the HCCGF website.

If golf isn’t your sport, you can come out and support HCCGF by participating in the tennis tournament that will be taking place on Sept. 29-30 at Deer Valley.

“If you don’t like golf, you can come out for tennis,” Reece said, “or both!”

Along with this, it is the 10th year that the HCCGF had been in the High Country, and the nonprofit will be celebrating its 10th anniversary on November 4 at the Boone Golf Club.