On Monday, June 9, Catholic Charities Atlanta and the Atlanta chapter of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul jointly hosted the first “Tee Off for Hope” charity golf tournament. Over 100 golfers joined honorary chairman Vince Dooley and special guest Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory at Reynold’s Landing in Greensboro

for this signature golf outing. Also participating in the tournament was former Georgia Tech football head coach George O’Leary.

The tournament raised over $71,000, which will go to support the programs and services provided by both St. Vincent de Paul and Catholic Charities.

At the post-golf dinner, Joe Krygiel, chief executive officer of Catholic Charities, and John Berry, executive director of the St. Vincent de Paul council, expressed their gratitude to the participants for their support and commitment to helping those in need in North Georgia. Sponsors of the tournament included Saint Joseph’s Hospital, Business Consulting Investigations, The Garrett Group, Multiple Benefit Services, BankSouth, the Cathedral of Christ the King, Edward Mitchell, Novare Group, NuRock, One Georgia Bank, Kathy and Joe Redgate, and lunch box sponsor, the Georgia Federal Credit Union, as well as the many other sponsors who helped make the event a success.

The benefit is intended to be an annual event, and details for the 2009 tournament will be released in the fall.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Atlanta, provides financial, material and spiritual support to those in need regardless of background or faith and collaborates with other organizations to empower people to achieve self-sufficiency. Information about the organization is available at www.svdpatl.org.

Catholic Charities Atlanta, Inc. is an outreach ministry of the Archdiocese of Atlanta rooted in the Gospel, serving people of all backgrounds and religions, with special concern for those most in need and most vulnerable. More information is available at www.catholiccharitiesatlanta.org.