Rounds 4 Research Auction 2018--Support the Game You Love

The annual Rounds 4 Research auction kicks off on Monday, April 30 and runs through May 6.  The R4R auction is a great way for golfers to help support turfgrass research by purchasing donated rounds to some of the nations best and some of your favorite courses, and some courses that you might not be able to play on a daily basis. The Rounds 4 Research program is the brainchild of the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Association where they helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to support research and education.  The program was moved a couple of years ago to the GCSAA Environmental Institute for Golf which administers the program and allows other states throughout the nation to benefit from this amazing program as well.

The program works by courses donating rounds of golf which are then listed at www.biddingforgood.com and are available for preview now, with the actual auction beginning Monday, April 30. Interested golfers can then go to the auction website and bid on rounds from courses all over the nation.

The Tennessee GCSA has worked hard to gather a great collection of over 100 rounds from courses throughout Tennessee and some surrounding states for this year's auction.  The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay is proud to be participating in the Rounds 4 Research auction this year, along with the other 8 courses that make up the Tennessee Golf Trail.  Tennessee golf courses participating in the program this year can be found at Tennessee Rounds 4 Research Available Golf Courses.

Research results being presented at UT Turf Field Day

Who benefits from funds raised from Rounds 4 Research? Well, ultimately you, the golfer, benefits.  All the proceeds raised from the R4R auction, at least in Tennessee, go to support turfgrass research, like that performed at The University of Tennessee-Institute of Agriculture, help to provide scholarships to the upcoming next generation of turfgrass manager, and provide education for current golf course superintendents and turf managers at local association meetings and special events like the UT Turfgrass and Ornamental Field Day.

A lot of golfers get excited about the Masters Tournament and with good reason, but ALL golfers should get excited about the Rounds 4 Research program.  I encourage every golfer that reads this blog to visit www.Rounds4Research.com  and preview the over 1,100 rounds across the nation available this year and be ready to start bidding tomorrow morning.  This is a special opportunity for golfers all across America to help support turfgrass research and education, and play some of the best courses available at some very special pricing.

So visit

 Rounds 4 Research 

this week and bid on amazing rounds at amazing courses and help do your part to provide the much needed funding for turfgrass research, scholarships, and education.  

We all win through this great program.  

We have done our part in gathering these rounds for the auction

---now do your part and get to bidding!!!

2017 Rounds 4 Research Auction---Bigger and Better Than Ever

The annual Rounds 4 Research auction kicks off on Monday, May 1 and runs through May 7.  The R4R auction is a great way for golfers to help support turfgrass research by purchasing donated rounds to some of the nations best and some of your favorite courses, and some courses that you might not be able to play on a daily basis. The Rounds 4 Research program is the brainchild of the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Association where they helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to support research and education.  The program was moved a couple of years ago to the GCSAA Environmental Institute for Golf which administers the program and allows other states throughout the nation to benefit from this amazing program as well.

The program works by courses donating rounds of golf which are then listed at www.biddingforgood.com and are available for preview now, with the actual auction beginning Monday, May 1. Interested golfers can then go to the auction website and bid on rounds from courses all over the nation.

The Tennessee GCSA has worked hard to gather a great collection of over 100 rounds from courses throughout Tennessee and some surrounding states for this year's auction.  The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay is proud to be participating in the Rounds 4 Research auction this year, along with the other 8 courses that make up the Tennessee Golf Trail.  In fact this year there are two separate rounds available from each of our courses.  Tennessee golf courses participating in the program this year can be found at Tennessee Rounds 4 Research Available Golf Courses.

Research results being presented at UT Turf Field Day

Who benefits from funds raised from Rounds 4 Research? Well, ultimately you, the golfer, benefits.  All the proceeds raised from the R4R auction, at least in Tennessee, go to support turfgrass research, like that performed at The University of Tennessee-Institute of Agriculture, help to provide scholarships to the upcoming next generation of turfgrass manager, and provide education for current golf course superintendents and turf managers at local association meetings and special events like the UT Turfgrass and Ornamental Field Day.

A lot of golfers get excited about the Masters Tournament and with good reason, but ALL golfers should get excited about the Rounds 4 Research program.  I encourage every golfer that reads this blog to visit www.Rounds4Research.com  and preview the over 1,100 rounds across the nation available this year and be ready to start bidding tomorrow morning.  This is a special opportunity for golfers all across America to help support turfgrass research and education, and play some of the best courses available at some very special pricing.

So visit

 Rounds 4 Research 

this week and bid on amazing rounds at amazing courses and help do your part to provide the much needed funding for turfgrass research, scholarships, and education.  

We all win through this great program.  

We have done our part in gathering these rounds for the auction

---now do your part and get to bidding!!!

Rounds 4 Research was a Resounding Success...But There's More Opportunities

The Rounds 4 Research auction ended last night with a resounding success.  With over 100 rounds available to bid on in Tennessee alone, we are happy to announce that over $11,500.00 was raised for turfgrass research, scholarships, and advocacy to be used in Tennessee.  Across the entire program over 900 rounds were bid on raising over $155,000.00   Congratulations and THANK YOU to all the winning bidders and thank you to all the participating golf courses.

The Tennessee Golf Course Superintendents Association is extremely grateful and thankful to all those who participated in the program.

Exciting News:  For those who were not able to participate, or were unlucky and got out bid, you now have a second chance at VICTORY!!!

The Environmental Institute for Golf is re-opening the auction to clear house on all the remaining rounds up for bid.  The auction will run from April 12-17.  We have 40 rounds remaining for Tennessee which will go back on the block.  

Here is your opportunity to play some great courses such as TPC Southwind, Spring Creek Ranch, The Links at Kahite, Hillwood Country Club, Humboldt Country Club, and even a one year membership at Knoxville Municipal Golf Course along with many more.   

To view all the available rounds please go to Tennessee R4R Auction and help raise money for turfgrass research while getting to play some great courses in Tennessee.  

Time to Tee Off with Rounds For Research Again

It is almost that time of year again where you have the opportunity to bid for the chance to play some of the best courses in the state of Tennessee while at the same time supporting and funding turfgrass research.  I am proud to announce that we (The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay) and all the other courses along the Tennessee Golf Trail will join close to 100 other golf courses in Tennessee as part of the Rounds 4 Research program.  Between April 1-10, 2016 you will have the opportunity to bid on rounds of golf on the Bidding For Good website with proceeds from your winning bid going to local and national golf associations to be used to fund education, research, advocacy, and scholarships.

The Rounds 4 Research program is a great and simple way for you to "support turfgrass research while playing on exclusive courses.  It's a WIN-WIN."  The funds raised by your winning bid will be split with at least 80% going to your local golf course superintendent association and the remaining amount going to the GCSAA Environmental Institute for Golf .  As stated before, it's a Win-Win.  You get to play on some of the best courses that you might have thought you would never get the opportunity to play and your local golf association, Tennessee Golf Course Superintendents Association gets much needed, and valuable, funds to help support turfgrass research that will aid all golf courses.

We have a generous collection of golf courses throughout the state of Tennessee who have stepped up and donated rounds of golf, usually a foursome with golf carts and some with range balls and/or other extras, which will make your golf experience even that much better.

So how can you help??  

1.  Go to Bidding For Good website and register for an account.

2.  Look over the golf courses for Tennessee and select the courses you are interested in bidding on.

3.  Get ready to bid on your choices from April 1-10.

That seems so simple so what else can you do to help out??

1.  Check the list of golf courses and make sure your home course is listed.

2.  If they are, Thank them for supporting the cause.  If they are not, Ask them why they are not on the list.  There is still time for your course to get involved.  Donations will be accepted throughout the auction period.

and

3.  Help promote the program but telling your membership, golf buddies, and anyone that will listen about this great opportunity.  Every little bit of promotion helps.

The Rounds 4 Research program only works if people bid on the rounds, so we can get millions of rounds donated, but if you don't do your part and bid on these amazing golf properties, then neither of us wins.  Please help us raise much needed funds for turfgrass research.

If you are a golf course in Tennessee that has donated a round THANK YOU.  The project would not be a success without you.

If you are a golf course interested in joining this great group of donors there is still time.  Please contact TGCSA Executive Secretary Ms. Shelia Finney or myself to donate a round.

Golf Industry Show 2015 in San Antonio

This past week Mitch and I had the honor and pleasure of attending the 2015 Golf Industry Show in San Antonio, Texas.  GIS includes both the annual national conference of the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America and the National Golf Course Owners Association, among others. This year was very special as we accepted the 2015 GCSAA President's Award for Environmental Stewardship from GCSAA President Keith Ihms during the Opening Ceremony.  This is the highest member honor given out by GCSAA and we could not be more proud.

Besides being able to address the attendees of the Opening Ceremony after accepting our President's Award I also had the pleasure of presenting to my fellow golf course superintendents on Tuesday morning.  My presentation on our Electric Equipment Initiative and how successful the project has been was very well received and we got lots of positive feedback and questions regarding our results.  Hope some will go back and really research the benefits of using electric equipment on their golf courses.

The Golf Industry Show provides many opportunities to meet new people and reconnect with old friends and this year was no exception.  I had the opportunity on Wednesday to promote our environmental projects on GCSAA TV with fellow environmental award winner Gary Ingram from California in a segment hosted by the one and only Brad Klein of Golfweek Magazine.  This was followed by another interview and then another one and finally the day concluded with a fun interview with John Maginnes on SiriusXM PGATOUR radio daily afternoon talk show.  It is always great to talk with the SiriusXM guys as they completely understand that without the work and dedication of the golf course maintenance staffs no golf would ever get played.

In many ways this had to be the busiest GIS ever with presentations and speeches each day but we still had time to meet with many people to talk about the future of environmental sustainability in the golf course industry.  We were able to meet with the great folks from Golf Environment Organization and discuss the exciting changes in their certification program.  We met with Ms. Teresa Wade of Experience Green to discuss the success of her Sustainability in Golf program.  At the Environmental Institute for Golf reception we got to speak with many like minded persons in the golf course industry and got to catch up with two of my mentors, David Phipps, GCSAA Northwest Field Rep. and Anthony Williams of Stone Mountain Golf Club.  These are only a few of the meetings and contacts and I would like to thank everyone for their time and interest.

It wasn't all work though and Mitch and I had time to relax and take in many of the sights offered in San Antonio.  We did make it up to see the Alamo, unfortunately it was night and the mission was closed.  The Towers of the America's was quite a sight to see especially at night lit up with the GCSAA emblem and the San Antonio Riverwalk was extremely nice even though the unseasonably cool weather kept most from walking along it.  We had a great time at the Jacobsen rodeo on Tuesday night where we got to get up close and personal with some authentic Texas longhorns and then watch a live rodeo.

Once again our supervisors in Nashville showed their continuing support for us by joining us at the event.  Mitch and I have to thank Mr. Nixon for taking time out of his busy schedule to always show his support for us.  It was nice to be able to spend some time with GCSAA CEO Rhett Evans and GCSAA President Keith Ihms over the past few months both at the USGA Annual Meeting and the GIS.  From my standpoint the golf course industry is in good hands and is primed for future success.

Again, Mitch and I have to thank everyone at GCSAA for their generous hospitality and recognition this past week.  It was a once in a lifetime experience that we will not soon forget.  To everyone behind the scenes at GCSAA and GIS THANK YOU.  If you are a superintendent that has not attended the GIS make it a career goal to do so.  You will not regret it and your course will get so much out of it.

Hope everyone who attended returned home safely and did not have to wait in the airports too long.  Til next year in San Diego.

Golf Environment Organization (GEO)

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay is very proud of our affiliations with different environmental and golf entities around the world as we feel that the more knowledge you have, and/or the more knowledgeable people you know, the better equipped you are to do the job properly.  Our golf course has had a long working relationship with organizations such as Audubon International, The Groundwater Foundation, the Environmental Institute for Golf, and the USGA Green Section.

Jacobsen President Mr. David Withers and
TDEC Commissioner Bob Martineau with our GEO
certification presentation

In an effort to broaden our knowledge base on what we can do to continue to lessen our impact on the environment we recently became involved with the premier environmental organization in Europe known as the Golf Environment Organization or GEO.  GEO serves a multitude of countries outside of the United States setting the benchmark for environmental stewardship and consciousness. Our involvement with GEO has evolved over the past couple of years and we were thrilled to gain our GEO Certified status on April 22, 2014 at our Earth Day 2014 Event presented by Jacobsen.

As with most things that mean something certification with GEO is not something that is easily achieved, but that is not to say that it can not be done or should not be sought after.  It took us about two years to complete our certification but we have had a few projects going on during that time.  The thing that I like about the GEO certification process is that they look not only at what you are doing now but how have you changed your operation practices over a period of time.  This allows you to see if you have changed and are just treading water or have you changed your practices and continue to make improvements.  The certification process is broken into six different categories; Nature, Water, Energy, Supply Chain, Pollution Control, and Community.

The "Nature" section of the certification, as you can guess, deals with how the golf course interacts with the natural surroundings and inhabitants of the golf course.  What are we doing to enhance the property for the benefit of the environment?  What changes in our management practices and policies have we made to lessen our impact on the environment and the surrounding?  What environmental programs or practices have we put in place to create sustainable and suitable habitat for wildlife?

One of the many wildlife inhabitants of our course

The content of our Nature certification section can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay Nature

The "Water" section of the certification deals with how we are managing the water utilized on our golf course, as well as, how we are protecting the water supplies and sources around the golf course.  What practices or policies have we put in place to limit the amount of water we are using?  What steps have we made to limit the amount of irrigated acreage on our golf course?  Have we selected the proper turfgrass species for our climate and water supply?  What steps have we taken to protect the water around and flowing through our golf course from pesticide, fertilizer, or soil particle contamination?

Converting our greens irrigation from full circle to part circle
heads has reduced our usage of irrigation to water greens

The content of our Water certification section can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay Water

The "Energy" section of the certification deals with the steps we have taken to reduce the amount of energy we are consuming at the golf course.  This is not only concerned with electricity but also gasoline and diesel fuels.  What practices have we changed to limit the amount of fuel used on the golf course?  Have we implemented a recycling program at the course?  Are we using energy efficient fixtures and appliances?

A view of one of our fully electric Jacobsen Eclipse 322
battery configuration

The content of our Energy certification section can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay Energy

The "Supply Chain" section of the certification deals with our use of products and companies which also hold an environmental friendly mindset along with how we are choosing our chemicals and fertilizers to better protect the environment.  Have we changed our purchasing practices to purchase more local products to reduce the amount of fuel used for delivery?  Are we using more organic products or are we limiting the amount and number of chemicals and fertilizers used on the course?  How are we managing our soil structure and moisture content to provide a more healthy turf which will require less chemicals and inputs?

Proper equipment like the Toro ProCore 648 allows us to
properly maintain our soil structure for better turf

The content of our Supply Chain certification section can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay Supply Chain

 

The "Pollution Control" section of the certification deals with how we are protecting the environment from direct or accidental contamination from fuel, chemicals, fertilizer, or other substances.  Have we created vegetative buffer strips around our water ways to protect them?  Are we mixing our chemicals and fertilizers on impervious surfaces? Are we storing our chemicals, fertilizers, and oil products in a safe and secure manner?

Vegetative buffer strips around all of our waterways helps
to protect the surface water from contamination

The content for our Pollution Control certification section can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay Pollution Control 

The "Community" section of the certification covers how we are involving and including our community in our environmental programs and practices.  How are we communicating our environmental activities and programs to the general public?  Are we reaching out to include the public in our projects and our property with the hopes that they will implement some of our programs on their property?  How are we promoting our environmental programs with the media to help improve the image of the golf course industry?  How are we making sure that the general public views the golf course as a positive entity within the community rather than a negative environmental polluter?  

Members of the Friends of Harrison Bay State Park who
monitor our eastern blue bird houses

The content of our Community certification section can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay Community

Our certification process was very enlightening and educational.  We had the pleasure of working with Mr. J. Russell Bodie, M.A. of The Smart Group as he was assigned to carry out our GEO onsite verification.  Mr. Bodie was great to work with and his Verification Report can be viewed here

The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay GEO Verification Report.

It is an honor for us to be included in the current group of only six golf courses in the United States which are GEO Certified.  The other courses are Broken Sound Club of Boca Raton, Florida, Highlands Country Club of Highlands, North Carolina, Mirimichi of Millington, Tennessee, The Ritz Carlton Golf Club of Orlando, Florida, and The Venice Golf and Country Club of Venice, Florida.

Environmental promotion and protection is important and can be very enjoyable.  We hope that each course will institute some environmental programs or practices in their operating standards.  Working with organizations such as Golf Environment Organization makes the process that much more enjoyable and easier.  Utilizing these environmental organizations for their knowledge and inputs can give you ideas and methods to improve your course, as they have ours.

2014 Rounds 4 Research Auction Starting Soon

It is almost time for the 2014 Rounds 4 Research Auction to begin.  Running from June 9-22, 2014 you will once again have the opportunity to bid on rounds of golf at some of the best golf courses in America, including some exclusive clubs that the general public is not able to play.  The best part of the Rounds 4 Research program is that while you are getting to enjoy these great golf courses you are also supporting and funding environmental research, scholarships and education, and outreach and awareness efforts.

A total of 20 golf courses in Tennessee have donated rounds this year and we hope momentum will continue to grow for this program and other courses will become involved in future years. The rounds are usually foursomes but some courses have designated special packages to sweeten the pot. Some of the courses available for bidding this year are TPC Southwind in Memphis, Council Fire Golf Club in Chattanooga, Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, the Tellico Village Golf Courses of Toqua, Tanasi, and Kahite, along with the entire Tennessee Golf Trail Collection, to name a few.

So here is how the Rounds4Research program works.  

1) Go to www.rounds4research.com to register to bid

2) During the time of June 9-22 visit https://www.biddingforgood.com to bid on the rounds you are interested in.

3) Following your successful winning of the bid EIFG (Environmental Institute for Golf) will send you a voucher or certificate for your round or package which you can then take to the golf course to redeem.

4) Here is the great part.  At least 80% of the bid amount is returned to the local GCSAA chapter that the round was donated to.  In the case of the Tennessee courses, the funds come back to Tennessee GCSA.

5) You get to feel good about helping the environment while enjoying a round of golf.

The auction is only successful if the rounds are bid on.  So tell your friends and neighbors, and even your enemies, to go to www.rounds4research.com to register to bid and to be prepared from June 9-22, 2014 to help yourself to some great golf while also benefiting the environment and environmental programs.

Earth Day 2014 at The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay

What better way to celebrate Earth Day 2014 than to spend it with about 50 friends promoting the environmentally sustainable efforts of the golf course industry.  Even though it drizzled from time to time during the day we had a great turnout of TDEC officials, community friends, golf course industry members, equipment manufacturers, and local, state, and national media.  All here to discuss how golf courses can beneficially contribute to the environment.

Before lunch we had time for people to gather, talk, and look at our Jacobsen ECLIPSE 322 electric mowers.  Some, non golf course people, were brave enough to take them out for a spin on the putting green.  All were amazed at how quiet they are and how easy it is to operate them.

After lunch, Deputy Commissioner Brock Hill kicked off the presentations detailing how the Tennessee Golf Trail and Tennessee State Parks contribute to the sustainability of the environment within Tennessee.  He then introduced Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Commissioner Bob Martineau (pictured) who started his presentation with our department "motto" that "Every day is Earth Day at TDEC".  This is true and we strive everyday to make decisions that best limit our impact on the environment and natural resources.

I was very happy that Dr. Jim Brosnan (pictured), Professor of Plant Sciences at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, was able to speak at our event.  Dr. Brosnan spoke to attendees about the role of golf courses in limiting the use of water by allowing naturalized areas to grow on golf courses and how golf courses can protect the waterways by providing buffer strips around the edge of waterways to filter chemicals and fertilizer runoff.  I was also grateful for Dr. Brandon Horvath and my "old" friend Dr. Tom Samples joined us for the day's event.

Our next speaker was Ron Wright, CGCS, Golf Course Superintendents Association of America Southeast Field Rep.  Mr. Wright has a special insight into how golf courses can contribute to the betterment of the environment because he has been in the golf course industry for over 30 years. Mr. Wright gets to see a multitude of golf courses across the southeast each year and had many great stories to tell about how the golf course industry is turning our reputation around from several years ago of being "environmental polluters".

One of the most special things that happened on Earth Day, in my opinion, was when Mr. Wright, on behalf of GCSAA and the Environmental Institute for Golf, presented Ms. Lori Munkeboe, Director of TDEC's Office of Sustainable Practices, a special Certificate of Recognition for her and her offices work on the Electric Equipment Initiative at The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay.  If it were not for Ms. Munkeboe wondering if there was any electric golf course equipment we could use, this celebration at Harrison Bay probably would not have happened.

The last speaker of the day was Mr. David Withers, Jacobsen Worldwide President.  Mr. Withers has a special passion for the environment that I have not seen from another equipment manufacturer.  Mr. Withers spoke to our guests about how equipment has changed over the years and how Jacobsen has embraced the need and desire of golf course superintendents to provide a high quality product while also limiting the strain on natural resources. Jacobsen's commitment to the environment lead to the creation of the fully electric Eclipse 322 mowers, one of the reasons we were able to reduce our gasoline usage by over 9,000 gallons this past year.

Mr. Withers, Paul Carter, Comm. Bob Martineau

Mr. Withers was also gracious enough to present The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay with our certification from Golf Environment Organization or GEO.  Jacobsen was the first equipment manufacturer to see the benefit of promoting environmental sustainability through GEO, so we were thrilled when Mr. Withers volunteered to present our certification.  Being only one of six golf courses in the United States to garner this exclusive environmental certification and having it be awarded on Earth Day was the icing on the cake.

Wildlife Walk group gathered in front of one of
our Operation Pollinator plantings

After the presentations were complete, and even though it was drizzling a bit, Mitch and Bill took our guests on a little "wildlife walk".  Our guests walked down along #10 fairway were Mitch and Bill showed them our wild turkey feeders, our blue bird houses, our wood duck nesting houses, our mallard duck nesting tubes, and finished it up near the Harrison Bay Eagle Cam nesting tree where Harrison Bay State Park Manager Don Campbell and HBSP Ranger Matt Vawter told the guests about the project and allowed them to look at the eagles through a spotting scope and binoculars.  For several of our guests this was the first time they had seen a bald eagle in the wild and were amazed at how beautiful they really are.

The Earth Day Celebration at The Bear Trace at Harrison Bay presented by Jacobsen was a tremendous success and I think we were able to help educate and inform our guests on how golf courses can be, and are, environmental stewards.



A special thanks goes out everyone who decided to spend the day celebrating with us.  We had many state and local officials, community friends, and media from around the nation join us and we could not be happier.

A very special thanks has to go out to Mr. Adam Slick of Jacobsen for thinking of and coordinating the event. Ms. Sharon and Ms. Amy were terrific in organizing the event and being the smart ones who thought of providing umbrellas which came in very helpful to our guests.  Mr. Glenn Gray of We Are Golf and Buffalo Communications did a great job of coordinating with all the media around the world to make sure the event got the maximum amount of coverage possible.

In case you were not able to attend here are some of the media reports on the event

WDEF Chattanooga CBS affiliate "Earth Day and Eagles..."

CNN.com "A golf club with more eagles than most"


Chattanooga Times Free Press "Bear Trace a fitting site for Earth Day Celebration"

Rounds 4 Research in Tennessee

Several years ago the Carolinas Golf Course Superintendents Association created a program to help raise much needed funds to help support local research, education and provide scholarships.  In three years time the Carolinas GCSA raised over $350,000.00 through an online auction of donated rounds.  The popularity of the program was so successful that last year the Environmental Institute for Golf (GCSAA's philanthropic organization) launched the program nationwide so more state chapters and turfgrass foundations could benefit from this great program.

Today the Tennessee GCSA launched it's participation in the Rounds 4 Research program in Tennessee for the first year.  Donated golf rounds be auctioned on the Rounds 4 Research site from August 1-11, 2013 and winning bidders will have one year to play their round (usually defined as a round of 4 golfers).  The great thing about this program is that it gives golfers the possibility to play courses that they may not have ready access to, but most of all a minimum of 80% of the funds raised by the auction will be returned directly to the TGCSA for use to fund research at local universities, provide environmental education, and educational scholarships.

I am very excited about this opportunity and I hope that anyone reading our blog will keep this program in mind as we get closer to the auction date and bid on the donated rounds.