At 5 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 9, five buckets containing 300 golf balls each will be dumped from a helicopter onto a roped-off target at Freeport Country Club.

Each ball will be pre-numbered, according to who has purchased it at a price of $10, and the winner in the Greater Freeport Chamber of Commerce fundraiser will walk away with a cool $2,500.

Thomas Wilson, marketing manager at the Freeport Gritty McDuff’s Brew Pub  and event chairman of the inaugural Golf Ball Drop, said that close to 1,000 balls have been sold. Should the ball that comes closest to a pre-approved target not be one that is spoken for, the chamber will go to the next one – and others if necessary – to determine a winner.

Whitefield pilot Mark Hitchcock of Maine Helicopters will fly the helicopter. Either a Greater Freeport Chamber of Commerce board member or a crew member will dump the golf balls.

“We will literally drop them one bucket after another,”Wilson said. “It will be quite a sight. I’ve seen it done at other charitable events.”

While the chances of winning are small, the payoff is sizable, Wilson said.

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“For a $10 investment, it’s a pretty good return,” he said.

Stephanie Petkers, executive director of the chamber of commerce, said that many businesses are buying chances as a thank-you to their employees for their hard work during the summer season. Anyone can purchase a chance and you do not need to be present to win, she said. A list of golf ball numbers will be posted on the chamber website, freeportmainechamber.com, prior to the drop and they will be selling chances right up to the time of the drop, Petkers said.

In addition to the Golf Ball Drop, there will be a 9-hole scramble golf match followed by an awards ceremony. A barbecue catered by Gritty’s, at $30 a person, begins at 4.

Proceeds from the Golf Ball Drop will go toward the chamber’s Budding Entrepreneur Scholarship, which goes to a student or recent graduate of Freeport High School interested in pursuing the field of business or entrepreneurship.

“The chamber is planning for this event to grow into an annual signature event for our community,” Petkers said. “Our plan is to add more of a festival feel to it once we get through the first year. It is a lot of work to get a new event off the ground and promoted and I would like to thank our golf event committee, ambassadors and board for all of their hard work and commitment to this project.”

The chamber’s Golf Committee consists of Wilson, Brett Davis of Brett Davis Real Estate, Dean Gilbert of Mortgage Network, Michelle Barker of Bath Savings Institution and Alison Paine, GHM Insurance. Sponsors include Fiore Artisan Olive Oils & Vinegars, Casco Bay Ford, Gritty’s and Brett Davis Real Estate. Maine Veterinary Medical Center is the putting contest sponsor, and other hole sponsors are Fiore, Servpro of Bath-Brunswick and Brentwood Center for Health & Rehabilitation.

Tickets are available at Bow Street Market, Cold River Vodka, Royal River Natural Foods, Gritty’s, Freeport Café, Lobster Cooker and Freeport True Value Hardware. 

Limited sponsorships and spots in the tournament are still available. Contact Petkers at 847-5240 or go to www.freeportmainechamber.com/events.html for more information.

The Golf Ball Drop logo.


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