The skies were a brilliant blue, the sun was bright yellow and Cheltenham Little League struck it rich at the 24th annual Ron Camp Columbus Day golf outing.
With 127 players testing their skills over the three nines at Limekiln Golf Club for the very last time, Cheltenham Little League put on another great show. “Always a great event put on by CLL,” commented Tim Durney, owner of the famous Timmy D’s Deli. “ The outing is very well organized, with exceptional staff hospitality. I highly recommend to participate in the next outing. Well done to the staff and thanks for a great time.”
As Limekiln will be closing its doors this year, CLL held its annual event for the 10th and final time at the 54-year-old venue owned by longtime Phillies’, Robin Roberts and Curt Simmons.
This outing was a team effort and that’s what it took to win this event, as the group of Darryl Beltz, Barry Delp, Frank Gifford and Denny Parastino captured the title. They edged out the group of Mike Kern, Dave Magagna and Phil Sokol on a match of cards, as both groups carded an event record of 56, 14-under-par.
Longtime golf outing participant, Roger Farrell had this to say. “Just a perfect day, maybe our best weather day for a well-run tournament. Always fun with great people and great prizes for all. This is one day I always look forward to.”
Skill prizes were awarded to Mitch Spritzler, Rob Gottschalk and Tom Evans for closest to the pins and Tom O’Driscoll, Bob Garton and Jack Gordon won straightest drives. In addition, we had four pot-of-gold winners, Brendan Sullivan, Tim Fink, Matt Lawlor Jr and Tom Karr.
Much of our success has to be credited to our sponsors. First and foremost, Bruce Rangnow, our event sponsor. Other major contributors were, Comcast Business, Barandon & Hollinger Real Estate, ACME-Hardesty Company, Lindinger’s Catering, Premier Group Insurance and the Cheltenham Police Department. Additional sponsors who stepped up, reads like a who’s who of the area, such as Art Gordon Cash Registers, Bryner Chevrolet, Drake Tavern, EZ Storage, Luigi’s Pizzarama II, Fran Martino Insurance, Mike Barton and family, Phil-Mont Kiwanis, Jim Schott, Primex Garden Center, Sprinkles Ice Cream and Timmy D’s Deli & Catering.
We would be remiss if we failed to mention two buisinesses who have continued to donate their services to our cause, JC Campoli and Dave Magagna. John and Carol Campoli have taken our group photos and other candid shots on the golf course for many years for free and Dave has printed our program at no cost for the past eight years!
"We had a great time," mentioned Drew Beaver. "Playing in this event for the first time, I thought it was really well organized. Everyone was really helpful and I enjoyed the lunch and snacks being brought around to everyone while on the course. I would love to do it again next year."
This event could never have been so successful without the amazing help of the core four, Ron Camp, Gail Chase, Tim Hassall and Phil Sokol. That’s not to say that many others didn’t help out. Our amazing cooks on the grille, Kelly Durand, Prue, Kelly and Jim Rebitz. In addition, our staff of volunteers were outstanding, such as Rachael Fritz, Janet Sokol, Trish Feil, Brian Trainor, Mike Sullivan, Greg Strup, Dave McCarron, James Smith, Irv Brockington, Gene Mattia, Len Garza, Jerry and Erin Czech, Vern Moore and nine members of the MaST Community Charter School National Honor Society!
“It was a great day,” said Phil Serpiello, first-time CLL golf outing participant. “I look forward to playing again, and I will definitely spread the word. The golf team did a great job organizing the event.”
As always, the big winner was Cheltenham Little League, as all proceeds, from green fees, raffles, silent auctions, etc., go directly back into the league. Over the last several years, we have been able to purchase new scoreboards, mowers and groomers, paint our clubhouse and other complex enhancements with the money procured from the outing.
"It was a lot of fun," commented golf enthusiast Mitch Spritzler. "Your team are veterans at this event, putting on a great outing. The food and of course the drinks were plentiful. Amazingly smooth start and we never had to wait to tee off. Certainly, winning some prizes was a definite plus!"
This one will be a hard act to follow, but keep an eye out for Columbus Day, 2020, as the 25th anniversary will be amazing. The date will be October 12th and it will be staged at Ron Jaworski’s Ramblewood Country Club.
