fundraiser for Meramec students raises $80,000 in 2018
BY: NORA ALRASHID
Staff Writer
STLCC hosted its seventh annual golf tournament, Tee For Tuition, on September 17th at Tapawingo National Golf Club. The goal of this event was to raise 
money and help college students with their tuition, according to Paula Savarino, tournament coordinator and auxiliary service manager at STLCC-Meramec. All proceeds from the tournament are used to support STLCC students with their tuition and financial aid.
“The main goal of starting this tournament was to raise college funds,” said Savarino. Although STLCC recently reduced tuition by five percent, the golf tournament allows the district to supplement tuition costs for students. The tournament featured students, staff and community members as golfers from all four STLCC campuses.
This fundraiser, among others — such as Bowling For Scholars which raised nearly $29,000 in 2017 — is the backbone for raising money to support STLCC students with their tuition. STLCC celebrated its 13th annual Bowling For Scholars last year. Bowling For Scholars is sponsored by the STLCC auxiliary services, whome Savarino is a member of. “We do Bowling For Scholars in the Spring and Tee For Tuition in the Fall.” said Savarino. Fundraising events are dispersed among the school year and students can join in at any time. “We also collect textbooks and a company buys them for an amount. “What we like about golf is there are vendors that supply college that sends people to play and that’s a great thing,” said Savarino.
In addition, STLCC Chancellor Jeff Pittman joined in on the tournament. “This year, we raised something like $80,000 for student scholarships, so it’s a really great program.” says Pittman. “It’s really beneficial to the school and the students.” he adds. All proceeds raised during the tournament and through donations and sales are used directly for college tuitions.
According to Savarino, no more than 200 golfers compete each year and many are sponsors of the event including Pepsi, UPS, LHM and Winning Streak. The committee for the event choose to limit the tournament to 200 people in case of overcrowding. The tournament also includes a live auction with sales on wine, sporting event tickets, hotel stays and cycling classes.
“The event began seven years ago in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the college,” said Savarino. Former chancellor of STLCC, Dr. Myrtle E. Dorsey, was the original creator of this event. She suggested the idea and then brought it to life in 2012. The first year of the tournament included student activities and events, according to Savarino. The activities and events were terminated the following year by Dr. Dorsey so the participants could concentrate on a competitive game of golf.
It was a successful event to begin with and has been continued ever since. “It’s getting better every year.” said Savarino. She believes the tournament will continue to thrive and support students for many more years.
