Oskaloosa Winter Open Raises Funds For YMCA Scholarships

The 5th Annual Osky Open concludes at 6pm on Saturday.

Oskaloosa, Iowa – It’s an annual event now in Oskaloosa. The month of February means it’s time for the Osky Winter Open.

The Winter Open was developed and started 5 years ago. Friday during the noon-hour, the event officially kicked off with a tournament.

The YMCA started the open 5 years ago as a fundraising opportunity, and a way to raise awareness of the organization.

“We set up an 18-hole mini-putt golf course here for the community to come out and enjoy. It costs 5 dollars a round or 20 dollars for a family to play. All the proceeds of the event go to our scholarship program. Everybody helps support the low-income families in our community be able to afford scholarships for our memberships and programs,” said David Phelps, Executive Director of the Mahaska County YMCA.

On Friday at lunch, participants got the chance to take on some new challenges.

“There’s some new holes this year, from what we’ve had in the past,” said Phelps. “There are some holes that are very challenging. There are other holes, they look easier than they are.”

Corporate sponsorship of the 18 holes, as well as the fees to play, are how that scholarship money is raised during the 2 day event. Folks like Chris Roach of Hawkeye Real Estate find that sponsorship helps bring joy to those unable to afford Y memberships, and fun for the community during the open.

“This is the 4th year we’ve sponsored a hole here in the mini-putt open,” said Chris Roach, Realtor and Broker with Hawkeye Real Estate. “It’s the YMCA and it’s one of their biggest fundraisers of the year. Obviously, recreation is very important in the community. It’s a fun event in the middle of winter and there’s nothing to do outside. People can come inside and have a little fun.”

Roach and his partner ended up with the lowest score during the Friday tournament, winning a round of golf from Harvest Point.