Retired RCMP officers Tammy Herman, who now lives in Osoyoos, and Pete Nazaroff, who now lives in Oliver, have joined forces and been successful in applying for the Osoyoos Golf Club to host the 44th Annual E Division Charity Golf Tournament. The three-day tournament will run from Sept. 14-16. (Keith Lacey photo)
The Town of Osoyoos is going to be overrun with police officers in September, but there won’t be any illegal activity going on.
The Town of Osoyoos and the Osoyoos Golf Club has been selected to host the 44th Annual E Division Charity Golf Tournament from Sept. 14-16.
Const. Tammy Herman, who recently retired after a long career with the RCMP, has just moved to Osoyoos.
She and fellow retired officer Pete Nazaroff, who has been living in Oliver since his retirement a couple of years ago, applied to have Osoyoos host the national golf tournament and they found out their application had been accepted and Osoyoos will host the E Division Charity Golf Tournament for the first time since the early 1990s.
“The tournament is held in a different place every year and we decided to put in an application to have the tournament come to Osoyoos because it has been more than 20 years since Osoyoos last hosted this event,” said Herman. “With the great weather we get in September, we feel we’re going to get a terrific turnout of officers and retired veterans at the tournament.
“Participants in this golf tournament are serving and veteran RCMP members, along with a limited number of corporate playing sponsors. Players travel in from all regions across the province to participate in this annual charity tournament.”
The main purpose of the tournament is to raise funds for Honour House, a society the provides temporary housing for Canadian Forces, veterans, emergency services personnel and their families, while they travel to receive medical care and treatment in the Metro Vancouver Area, said Nazaroff.
“These brave men and women, along with their families, sacrifice so much to protect our freedom and our everyday way of life,” he said. “Honour House allows us the opportunity to show our support and appreciation for their selfless sacrifices.”
All tournament sponsors will play a direct role in providing this housing for officers when in need, he said.
Playing sponsors will be asked to pay $425, which will cover playing 18 holes per day all three days, a golf cart, range balls, the banquet on Wednesday, Sept. 14 and Thursday, Sept. 15 and a buffet lunch on Friday, Sept. 16.
A sponsor sign will also be displayed prominently on display at one of the golf holes.
A company or business can sponsor a single hole for $200 and their sponsor sign will be placed prominently on display at one of the golf holes.
If unable to participate at the sponsor level, local businesses will be asked to donate merchandise or gift certificates, said Herman.
A list of contributors will be compiled and distributed to the players and the media and official tax receipts will be issued by the charity for any contribution to the tournament.
Herman said she’s confident a full field of 144 golfers will participate and expects more than 200 people will be visiting Osoyoos for the tournament as many officers and retired veterans will be bringing their spouses.
“It should provide a real nice boost to the local economy as all of the competitors will be staying in local hotels, motels and campgrounds,” she said.
While this is strictly a fun tournament and the goal is to raise as much money as possible for Honour House, there will be some good golf played as well, she said.
“There are a lot of regulars at the tournament who are really good golfers,” she said. “It will be a mixed field with some outstanding golfers and many officers who hardly play at all, but want to be part of this tournament.”
Nazaroff and Herman have both played in the tournament on several occasions and both are looking forward to this year’s tournament.
“It’s a lot of fun and we raise some good money for a very worthwhile cause, so we’re really looking forward to it,” said Nazaroff. “The Osoyoos golf course is always in great shape and I know a lot of the officers are already talking about the tournament even though it’s still several months away.”
Nazaroff and Herman will be spending a lot of their time over the next several weeks trying to get sponsors on board.
“We will be approaching a lot of local businesses and we would like to get a few of the wineries involved as well,” she said. “We’ve always had strong corporate support for this event and we expect a good response from local businesses for this year’s tournament.”
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
