A pair of golfers that includes BizTimes Media publisher Dan Meyer won the third annual First Business Bank Invitational golf tournament Monday at Westmoor Country Club in Brookfield.
Meyer and his teammate, First Business Bank chief executive officer Corey Chambas, played to raise money for workforce development nonprofit GPS Education Partners. GPS will receive a check for $10,000.
“We for-profit companies have a big commitment towards supporting the not-for-profit community,” Meyer said. “We’re honored to be able to support and get the word out, because it’s a part of what we do at BizTimes on a regular basis.”
The best-ball golf tournament gives local business and nonprofit leaders a chance to compete in two-person teams to win thousands of dollars for the charity of their choice.
Last year, two teams representing local charities — Meta House and the Milwaukee Rescue Mission — tied for first place and each received a check for $9,250. In 2014, the first-place team won $18,000 to Lifesong for Orphans.
To enter the tournament, each team had to pay $1,000. The entry money was then given to the choice charities of the first-, second- and third-place teams.
The Shalom Center and the Kenosha Achievement Center split the second place winnings of $2,500 earned by Wes Ricchio of First Business Bank and Jeff Valeri of the Valeri Agency. Third-place finishers Brad Weckwert and Paul Rothering of Vrakas CPA’s played to raise money for the Raymond School Foundation, which received $1,500.
“It’s always fun to win, but when winning supports deserving not-for-profit organizations like GPS Education Partners, it’s especially rewarding,” Chambas said.
GPS, formerly known as Second Chance Partners for Education, is a youth apprenticeship program formed with the support of Generac Power Systems in 2000.
Since it began in 2011, the First Business Invitational has raised nearly $300,000 for local charities.
