The great outdoors and caring hearts raise more than $440,000 at the annual Sportsman for Humanity event

Every year countless people throughout Holmes, Wayne and Tuscarawas counties invest a lot of money in purchasing outdoor merchandise.

On Saturday, Aug. 11 they invested in all of that in addition to area families suffering from financial heartache during the Sportsmen for Humanity fundraising dinner banquet and auction, which took place at the Mt. Hope Auction Barn.

The SFH fundraiser is designed as a way to raise funds for local families in need. In the past that list has included families with loved ones facing cancer, a heart transplant, families who had recently lost loved ones, families with children going through costly medical struggles, funeral expenses and more.

How supportive are the people at the SFH event? This year’s winner of the 50/50 pocketed $16,265, meaning people bought $32,530 worth of tickets. Over the past three years that total has doubled annually, going from approximately $8,000, to $16,000, to $32,000.

It all added up to the event raising $440,000 to aid area families facing financial burdens.

“What an incredible way for people to come together to help fellow community families,” SFH treasurer Dennis Yoder said. “Last year our total was about $287,000, so we saw a large increase in support this year again. We feel so blessed by the support from this community and the way God has blessed us to help other families in need. Last year we were able to touch the lives of more than 50 families, and this year we should be able to do even more with the funds raised through this event. This money will all go to families who have experienced a sudden financial hardship in Holmes, Wayne and Tuscarawas counties.”

Each year those attending the event are able to provide names of those in need, and each of those nominated families are thoroughly investigated by a committee to make sure there is a legitimate need.

The gala event saw a huge crowd come in for the main meal, followed by an enormous auction that had items from all walks of outdoor life.

Peppered throughout the large facility were a number of games. Using decks of Rook cards, patrons could purchase one of 400 decks with four of those decks containing special cards that were worth $500. Other decks were cut in half, and when a deck was sold, the winning half of the card drawn was matched to the winner, meaning hundreds of people won prizes, like one of the dozens of rifles donated to the evening.

The biggest giveaway came during the Grand Slam Packs, which saw people purchase tickets for prizes like a motorized bicycle, state-of-the-art crossbows, expensive rods and reels, top-of-the-line rifles and more.

One additional event was the Last Man Standing event, which saw auctioneer Steve Chupp auction off five numbered pens for between $750 and $1,300. The numbered pens were then drawn, and the purchaser of the last one drawn got to choose from myriad Grand Slam choices.

From the general drawing for prizes to the Grand Slam packages, people had to stay on their toes or risk missing a winning ticket. The winning person in the Last Man Standing opted to go with a $2,400 Raven crossbow.

In addition Chupp kept the night rolling along as he auctioned off the items, many of which were donated. There also were some big raffles like the one for a beautiful Polaris Ranger that brought in $22,000. The Ranger was donated, so that entire amount went to the cause.

“This would not be possible without the support of our community and their commitment to helping those in need,” said Owen Miller, Sportsmen for Humanity president. “From the businesses and individuals who donate to the cause to the people who attend and invest in the auction, what we are able to do with the money raised is a real blessing to many local families. There are a lot of ways to win at this event, but more importantly it is about showing compassion to those around us.”

Not only does the SFH committee enjoy coming up with new ways to entertain and give away prizes, they also enjoy hearing ideas from the public as to how they can improve and create new and fun ways to win.

“We love hearing other thoughts and ideas, and we have already received some neat ideas on things we can add to next year’s event,” Yoder said.

While people are there to support area families, each of those in attendance also shares the same passion for anything and everything that has to do with the great outdoors.

“Whether it is fishing or hunting, grilling, camping or any other type of outdoor activity, there are a lot of great ways to enjoy the outdoors,” Yoder said. “Participating in the great outdoors is such a big part of our lives in this community, which is a big reason this event continues to grow. People in our community here are very big outdoorsmen, and I think that is a big part of it. But the main reason continues to be the hearts of those reaching out and helping others.”

Anyone wishing to donate to the SFH fund may do so by sending donations to Sportsmen for Humanity, 2313 Shetler Road NW, Sugarcreek, OH 44681. Anyone with questions may call Miller at 330-231-1032 or Yoder at 330-231-8941 or email sportsmenforhumanity@gmail.com.