FORT WORTH, Texas – For the first time since Birdies For Charity was introduced as part of the Charles Schwab Challenge in 2005, a record $20 million in Birdies For Charity donations were generated during the 2024 tournament to masterfully coincide with the 20th anniversary of the annual fundraising campaign.
Last week, tournament and Fort Worth Colonial Charities Inc. officials gathered with representatives from the 33 Birdies For Charities non-profit organizations at Colonial Country Club to celebrate the historical year of giving.
$20,444,796 is the final tally of Birdies For Charity donations raised for 33 local charitable organizations during this year’s tournament. This includes pledges being energized by a matching fund of $280,000 from Fort Worth Colonial Charities Inc., the tournament’s philanthropic entity.
The tournament’s 33 non-profit organization partners worked to secure pledges from their supporters, then the PGA TOUR pros did their part by making 1,116 birdies during the Charles Schwab Challenge last May.
“It is extremely rewarding that we exceeded the $20 million milestone in the 20th year of Birdies For Charity. This shows the commitment and dedication we have from all 33 charities and the impact that it is making on the community,” commented Logan Dickinson, Charles Schwab Challenge Birdies For Charity Chairman.
Of the PGA TOUR events staging Birdies For Charity campaigns, Colonial’s $20 million figure is one of the largest on TOUR. Since the program’s inception locally in 2005, the annual Birdies For Charity campaign has generated $171,001,636 for participating charities.
Over the past three decades the 78-year-old Charles Schwab Challenge tournament has generated cash and services for more than 150 different organizations, mostly local
non-profits, surpassing $220 million. The breadth of donations focus on children and support a variety of programs, including camp scholarships for disabled, special needs or low-income children, residency programs/services for abused, neglected and at-risk children, cultural programs/field trips for underserved students, college scholarships, educational mentoring programs, medical diagnostic and treatment services for disabled and low- income children, afterschool programs, support services for homeless families and more.
Supporting military related charities are also core values of the tournament. Working with Military Warriors Support Foundation, Higginbotham, Hillwood and Vermeer Texas-Louisiana, the tournament and Fort Worth Colonial Charities Inc. have helped donate 27 mortgage-free homes to injured veterans since 2011.
The tournament also partners with Lockheed Martin to send care packages to soldiers annually, and thanks to the Rainwater Foundation, the tournament is able to host active and retired military personnel as special guests.
The 33 Birdies For Charity Groups are:
ACH Child and Family Services
Alliance for Children
Baylor Scott & White All Saints Health Foundation Boys & Girls Clubs of Tarrant County
Camp Fire USA First Texas Council
Cancer Care Services
CASA of Tarrant County
Cassata Catholic High School
Child Study Center
Communities in Schools of Greater Tarrant County Community Storehouse
Cornerstone Assistance Network
The First Tee of Fort Worth
Fort Worth Museum of Science & History
Fort Worth Youth Orchestra
Gill Children’s Services
HOPE Farm, Inc.
Imagination Fort Worth Kids Who Care
Komen Greater Fort Worth Lena Pope
Lighthouse for the Blind
Presbyterian Night Shelter
Recovery Resource Council
Ronald McDonald House of Fort Worth SafeHaven of Tarrant County
Texas Health Resources Foundation Texas Wesleyan University
The Gatehouse
The WARM Place
The Women’s Center
A Wish With Wings
YMCA of Metropolitan Fort Worth
