Bunkers is at it again… 3 Million Golf Balls! Yes, 3,000,000 golf balls have been collected and distributed to our soldiers overseas and our Wounded Warriors around the world.

After watching a television program about soldiers stationed overseas passing the time by driving golf balls in the desert, we figured that the least we could do was collect some balls and clubs to do something to show our admiration and appreciation for the men and women around the world who protect our many freedoms and democracy.

What began as almost a whimsical idea to show support soon grew wings and “Bunkers in Baghdad” was born.

In November, 2008, the first shipment of golf balls left Buffalo, New York, en route to Iraq. Bunkers in Baghdad has quickly grown into an international force. Partnering with school children all throughout the country, professional sports franchises, PGA pros and equipment companies, including Callaway Golf, Bunkers has collected and distributed more than 60,000 golf clubs to active military members and veterans in all 50 states and nineteen countries across the globe and just shipped its 3,000,000 ball. Here is a look at Bunkers by the numbers:

- Collected and shipped more than 3,000,000 golf balls

- Delivered to19 countries around the world

- Delivered to Wounded Warriors and VA Hospitals in all 50 states (and Wounded Warrior Programs throughout Germany and Italy)

- Worked with 118 schools in 34 states through our Bunkers Buddies Program

- Partnered with 27 sports teams (including the Buffalo Sabres, Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Lightning and Chicago Blackhawks)

Despite this incredible growth, the mission has remained the same — to give back to those who have given so much to us all.

Whether Bunkers is building driving ranges in Afghanistan, delivering golf clubs to be used in rehabilitation programs stateside or mobilizing school children to pack cases of balls that include personal letters of appreciation in each shipment, Bunkers in Baghdad is truly making a difference in the lives of thousands of soldiers and veterans worldwide.

Please join us in celebrating this milestone, because we could not have reached it without your support. Thank you for supporting Bunkers in Baghdad and our mission to support our troops.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad recently partnered with Rock Bottom Golf and the Daemen College Veterans to help our our soldiers overseas. Bunkers received a large donation of golf club components (shafts, heads, tape, glue). In our ongoing efforts to work with wounded warriors and veteran groups- Bunkers reached out to the Daemen College Veterans which is composed of brave men and women who have served this country (and many of which are wounded warriors). The group offered to make the golf clubs for their fellow service members around the globe. First, the vets reached out to a local PGA pro to teach them how to make the golf clubs and once they had their lesson, they were off and running.

There was still one issue that remained - no golf grips. Rock Bottom Golf (www.rockbottomgolf.com) came to the rescue. Rock Bottom was kind enough to donate more than 125 golf grips to help the wounded warriors complete the project. As an added bonus - they also donated 50 putters for our soldiers as well!

Bunkers is proud of the best efforts of Rock Bottom Golf and the Daemen College Veterans to help members of our armed forces. The clubs have been sent to soldiers in Afghanistan, Kuwait, Iraq, Australia, and Japan over the course of the last couple of weeks.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad was recently featured in the USA Today. This has been great for the charity. As we continue to receive daily requests for golf equipment from our soldiers and wounded warriors around the world- the article has helped bolster donations nationwide.

To see the full article, check out this link:

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2012/03/charity-provides-donated-golf-balls-and-clubs-for-troops/1?goback=.gmr_2670352.gde_2670352_member_107632957#.T4nFvFGQOSo

 

The 3rd Annual Bunkers in Baghdad Open will be Friday, AUGUST 24, 2012 at the Links at Ivy Ridge.  Stay tuned for more details as this year's tournament will fill up fast!

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is grateful for the outpouring of generosity and kindness that the West U PTO in Houston, Texas and Houston Texans WR Kevin Walter recently extended to our charity. I recently had the opportunity to take part in The West U PTO First Annual Golf Tournament and a great time had by all - especially the fine golfers who challenged Kevin Walter to a closest to the pin contest on a difficult Par 3 at Wildcat Golf Club. Kevin was kind enough to volunteer his time and the proceeds raised from the golf challenge benefit will directly benefit Bunkers in Baghdad. The hole was sponsored by TreeSource Wholesale Nursery.

We would like to thank tournament organizer Chick Chickering, hole sponsor Brian Rose, West U Principal John Threet, Dr. Chris and Billye Jo Sanders, Kevin Walter, and Kathryn and Chip Adams for their efforts on our behalf. We are proud of the partnership between Bunkers in Baghdad and the great folks affiliated with West U Elementary and look forward to working with them in the future.

Check out our facebook page for pictures!

 

Partnership Will Assist Wounded Warriors in Recovery From Combat Injuries

 

Bunkers is off to a great start in 2012. In terms of requests- this is the busiest we have been since the summers of 2009 and 2010 (when we were receiving between one to ten requests a day). We have recently received requests from two new countries- Honduras and Australia. And now we've been receiving many more requests from Naval sailors who are out at sea across the world...

With donations coming in from all across the country daily - Bunkers has been filling each order as they come in from our soldiers, sailors and Marines around the globe.  However- we currently have a shortage of left handed golf clubs. If you or someone you know may have that set sitting around in the basement or are thinking of getting a new set this coming golf season- please feel free to send those old clubs to us at Bunkers in Baghdad, Inc., 665 Main Street, Suite 400, Buffalo, New York 14203.

 

What a year 2011 has been! From sending 2 million golf balls to our soldiers overseas and wounded warriors around the globe to working with VA Hospitals and active duty personnel here at home- Bunkers continues to grow. As we inch closer to the 3 million golf ball plateau- we are looking forward to helping more soldiers and veterans in 2012. This year- we were very fortunate to see our brave men and women leave Iraq- and we are very happy to have our mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends and relatives home with us for the holiday.

However- we cannot forget about our other brave men and women stationed around the globe. We were very busy during this holiday season fulfilling requests from Afghanistan, Korea, and Kuwait (just to name a few). Bunkers also has partnered with many Wounded Warrior programs all throughout the world- most notably the Warrior Transition Battalion Europe based out of Heidelberg, Germany. Before our brave men and women come home after they are injured- they may stop in Heidelberg for treatment. Bunkers has supplied golf equipment for these soldiers to use for recreation and rehabilitation and look forward to continuing this partnership in the future.

This year- we continued to expand our Bunkers Buddies Program. We have been so fortunate to partner with the International Junior Golf Tour (IJGT) and their great golfers. We are looking forward to working with them in the future and expanding our relationship with them even more. Bunkers has now worked with over 80 schools in 30 states- including schools throughout Florida, Texas, the Carolinas, California and New York. The students have taken an active role in our charity by volunteering to collect golf equipment, package it and ship it overseas for our soldiers. This is a very important part of the charity that helps teach these young kids about service and volunteerism.

Our partnership with our friends at the Florida (Miami) Marlins, Chicago Blackhawks and Tampa Bay Lightning continued this year as well. We are looking forward to working with the Buffalo Sabres and other professional sports teams in 2012. We have also had the opportunity to work directly with a variety of fine professional golfers like Arnold Palmer and Ray Floyd, NASCAR stars, country music's finest entertainers and TV and movie stars to help Bunkers as well. From donating their own golf equipment to autographed memorabilia - their support is invaluable to us.

This year also saw Bunkers in Baghdad get profiled in several golf magazines and other national publications; continued to grow our social media efforts on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn; and, hosted our 2nd successful golf tournament – The Bunkers in Baghdad Open.

How does Bunkers in Baghdad accomplish all of this? Only because of you - our generous and caring supporters. From our grassroots efforts in the community, like our contributors randomly mailing in contributions from across the country, great patriotic Americans like Dick Nelson and Hal Enstice collecting golf balls from all throughout Western New York and drumming up financial support to help us ship all of the golf equipment overseas, equipment drives at golf courses and country clubs around the USA, and finally, through our special charity partners like Callaway, Goldberg Segalla and LoudMouth Golf, to name a few, who do so much to support our soldiers day in and day out.

At the end of the day - we are here for our Soldiers and Wounded Warriors. Our daily interactions with soldiers overseas, like our friend Tony Nash and others, brighten our days and the progress of the Wounded Warriors that we have helped inspires us. So as we close 2011 - we want to thank everyone for their on-going support and we look forward to a bigger and better year in 2012.

Happy Holidays and a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year.

 

Just in time for Thanksgiving, take a look at the mail call page for new messages from the troops.  No one explains better how your donations make a difference than the soldiers who benefit from them. This Thanksgiving we are grateful for all of our soldiers and veterans and also for you - all of our supporters who help us achieve our mission.  Thank you for helping make a difference.

 

 

Over the course of the last three years as the President of Bunkers in Baghdad, Joe has humbly had the opportunity to speak with, work with and help thousands of veterans  Every time he hears a new story, visits a VA Hospital or speaks at a VFW, he gives thanks for everything our brave veterans have done to protect our many freedoms and democracy. The stories he has shared with us have made an impact on us all.

Today and everyday - all of us at Bunkers in Baghdad salute you.  Please take a moment out of your busy day and pay tribute today to our veterans, to those who have given their lives and to their families - for there are not enough tributes, enough praise or commemorations that can ever truly match the magnitude of our veterans' service and sacrifice.

 

President Obama's announcement that our brave soldiers are coming home from Iraq is the best news that we have heard in a long time.  We cannot wait to have our mothers and fathers, sons and daughters, brothers, sisters, cousins and neighbors home for holidays.

With all of this great news coming out of Iraq- we still have to be cognizant of all of our other soldiers around the world- especially our men and women fighting a war on terror in Afghanistan.  Bunkers in Baghdad also continues to send golf equipment to wounded warriors, VA Hospitals and active duty soldiers all throughout the United States.

We thank you for all that you have done for our armed forces and wounded warriors around the world- and we look forward to working with you in the future to continue bringing the game of golf to our soldiers, veterans and wounded warriors. 

In closing, it is imperative that we not forget about those who sacrificed their lives to get us to this day.  We remember and pray for the fallen and all who were wounded during the course of this long war.

 

Over the course of the last 3 years - Bunkers in Baghdad has worked with more than 20 professional sports teams in order to help our soldiers overseas and wounded warriors here at home. Specifically - our friends at the Chicago Blackhawks, Florida Marlins and Tampa Bay Lightning - have helped Bunkers collect golf equipment and raise money to ship the equipment to soldiers overseas.

This year, we are looking forward to working with our hometown Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres have been very generous already by donating autographed memorabilia that we have raffled off at our events.

We would like to wish the Buffalo Sabres the best of luck on their upcoming season!

 

It's hard to believe, but this October, Bunkers in Baghdad will be three years old. It is amazing that over the course of the last couple of years - we have collected and shipped more than 2.4 million golf balls and 50,000 golf clubs to our brave soldiers overseas and wounded warriors all across the country.

Please come and celebrate with us at the Bunkers Birthday Bash Happy Hour on Friday, October 7 from 5:30-7:30 pm at Mezza Restaurant, 929 Elmwood Avenue, Buffalo.

$20 includes food and drinks (beer, wine, well drinks). Proceeds to benefit Bunkers in Baghdad.

 

Active duty soldiers - Wounded Warriors – Veterans – Great Friends and Volunteers - A Helicopter Fly-Over - Perfect Buffalo Weather - What more could we ask for?

The 2nd Annual Bunkers in Baghdad Open Charity Golf Tournament was a great success. This year, with the help of our generous sponsors (Bryant and Stratton College; Andrews, Bernstein and Maranto, LLP; O-AT-KA Milk Products Cooperative; Tidal Acquisitions Group Inc.; and Verizon) and volunteers, Bunkers in Baghdad was able to put together a wonderful golf tournament at The Link at Ivy Ridge. The money raised from the Open will go towards shipping golf clubs and golf balls to our soldiers overseas and wounded warriors here at home. The tournament dinner featured a special awards presentation of two President's Awards (Dick Nelson and Hal Enstice) and a Hero Award (Cpt. Eric Harrison), three very deserving individuals who are tireless supporters of Bunkers. The night was capped off with an auction including incredible prizes donated by celebrities ranging from Alan Jackson to Arnold Palmer. We appreciate everyone's support and look forward to next year (where if you are lucky- you might just “Beat the Prez”).

Check out the pictures on our scrapbook page!

 

At the begining of the 2011 baseball season, we partnered with the Florida Marlins - first starting with the Florida Marlins Foundation's Annual Golf Tournament and helping wrap the season up with Golf Day at Sun Life Stadium. We are proud that TOGETHER we have been able to help thousands of soldiers and wounded warriors around the world. Most recently- Bunkers in Baghdad participated in Golf Day with the Florida Marlins. Bunkers had the opportunity to collect hundreds of golf clubs and more than 6,000 golf balls. The following day- the golf equipment was donated to Bruce W. Carter Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center to aid their wounded warrior program. Two other great things happened at Golf Day - we were able to collect money for the shipping of golf equipment overseas through the 50-50 raffle at the stadium and finally, Joe had the opportunity to throw out the first pitch at the game. (check out the scrapbook page for some great pictures from Golf Day!)

All in all- an absolutely great season. Bunkers in Baghdad cannot thank the Marlins enough. We wish the Marlins the best of luck as they move into their beautiful stadium in 2012.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad recently delivered more than 53,000 golf balls to our brave soldiers in the United States Army stationed at Ft. Drum. We are always happy to make the road trip from Buffalo to Ft. Drum in order to help out our active duty personnel. The delivery was the largest single donation the charity has made since our inception. The golf equipment will be used by the Ft. Drum Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation (FMWR) division. Bunkers would especially like to thank Joe Wahl from JM&R Electrical Co. for helping haul the equipment and one of our original Bunkers Buddies, Kelly Glascott, for packaging and moving all of the equipment for us. The collection and shipment of the equipment was a total team effort. (check out pictures of the big haul on the scrapbook page!)

 

Happy Independence Day! We hope that everyone is enjoying a safe and happy 4th of July holiday weekend.  As you celebrate with your friends and family, please take a moment to remember the sacrifices of all those veterans and soldiers who serve us all everyday.  American independence wasn't a gift, it was won by the sacrifice of brave men and women and it has been guaranteed ever since by members of the armed forces. Thank you to all who serve and who have served.

 

Check out our new "Tournament 2011" page for all the information you need to sponsor/participate in the 2nd Annual Bunkers in Baghdad Open Charity Golf Tournament!

 

It's official - 2 Million Golf Balls! Yes, 2,000,000 golf balls have been collected and distributed to our soldiers overseas and our Wounded Warriors here at home.

In November, 2008, the first shipment of golf balls left Buffalo, New York, en route to Iraq. In just two and a half years, Bunkers in Baghdad has grown into an international force. Partnering with school children all throughout the country, professional sports franchises, PGA pros and equipment companies, including Callaway Golf, Bunkers has collected and distributed more than 50,000 golf clubs to active military members and veterans in all 50 states and eleven countries across the globe and just shipped its 2,000,000th ball.

Despite this incredible growth, the mission has remained the same — to give back to those who have given so much to us all.

Whether Bunkers is building driving ranges in Afghanistan, delivering golf clubs to be used in rehabilitation programs stateside or mobilizing school children to pack cases of balls that include personal letters of appreciation in each shipment, Bunkers in Baghdad is truly making a difference in the lives of thousands of soldiers and veterans worldwide.

Please join us in celebrating this milestone, because we could not have reached it without your support. Thank you for supporting Bunkers in Baghdad and our mission to support our troops.

 

Check out our Mail Call page for a new bunch of messages from the troops!

 

 

Happy Memorial Day! As you enjoy the holiday with your friends and family, please take a moment to reflect on those who sacrificed for our freedom. Who honor the service and many sacrifices made by the brave men and women of our armed forces and their families. Thank you to all who serve and have served.

 

On May 23, 2011, Bunkers' President Joe Hanna made a special delivery of golf equipment to our friends at Fort Drum.  This was the very first military base we delivered to when we started out a few years ago and we are always glad for the chance to visit. Check out the scrapbook page for photos of Joe's trip.

 

The great raffle items have started rolling in for The Bunkers in Baghdad Open... The King, Arnold Palmer- has kicked off our collection of great autographed memorabilia for our auction. We have been receiving autographed items from other celebrities and athletes like John Travolta, Toby Keith, Kevin Harvick, Bob Uecker, Tony Jacklin, Mike Eruzione, Bobby Flay, Larry Csonka, Patrick Kane, Nolan Ryan, Eric Dickerson, Jim Kelly, George Lopez, and Jamie-Lynn Sigler... With more great items to come!

 

Don't forget to check out our scrapbook page.  We are constantly adding new pictures we receive from troops around the world showing your donations being put to good use.

 

Mark your calendars! We're proud to annouce that our benefit golf tournament - the Bunkers in Baghdad Open will take place on Friday, August 26, 2011 at The Links at Ivy Ridge in Akron, NY.   More details to follow soon. Like last year, we are guaranteed to have great prizes, plenty of exciting give-aways and on-course contests, and tons of fun!

 

To go along with the golf balls and golf clubs we send to our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan - we always get requests for turf. We recently contacted Lowe's and asked if they could help us out by donating something for our brave men and women to hit off of. Lowe's came through for us in a big way.  Many thanks to Lowe's for their generous donation and all they do to support our soldiers overseas and wounded warriors here at home. Thank you!

 

Thank you to the Chicago Blackhawks and to Patrick Kane for autographing several special edition camo jerseys for Bunkers to use at our annual golf tournament. The Blackhawks have been one of our biggest supporters since we started and we are very grateful for the partnership.

For all of their hardwork and support of Bunkers in Baghdad - the Chicago Blackhawks were recently awarded a Certificate of Appreciation from the US Army's 2nd Battalion- 11th Field Artillary Regiment.

 

With The Masters right around the corner - now is the perfect time to say thank you and wish the best of luck to two-time Masters Champion Tom Watson and his wife Hilary for their generous donation to Bunkers in Baghdad. Mr. Watson was a part of Operation Links - the trip that David Faherty wrote about in Golf Magazine that helped inspire the creation of Bunkers in Baghdad.

We cannot thank the Watson enough for their support of our brave soldiers here at home and around the world. Thank you for all that you do - not only for our soldiers, but for ALS research, pediatric research, and the First Tee Program.

 

When we explain what Bunkers in Baghdad is all about to people who want to learn more about us - we tell them that obviously our soldiers and wounded warriors are the two most important parts of the charity. A third key element is our Bunkers Buddies program.

Through our Bunkers Buddies program - we work with students from throughout the United States to draw pictures and write letters for the soldiers. We also have the students package the golf equipment and help us run fundraisers. It is a great way to teach the students about service and what our men and women in the armed forces are doing for us day in and day out. The children are receptive and very willing to help out.  Bunkers has worked with students in New York, California, Florida, Texas, Delaware, and now Tennessee and South Carolina (a total of over 40 schools).

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is closing in on the 2 MILLION golf ball plateau very quickly. Our friends at Tee It Up for the Troops (www.teeitupforthetroops.com) donated over 3,500 lbs. of golf balls for our soldiers overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan and wounded warriors all across the United States. The demand from our soldiers is greater than ever- and this donation will certainly go a long way in filling the requests from our brave men and women.

 

Over the course of the last two and a half years -  many individuals, corporations, sports teams, and schools have gone out of their way to help support our soldiers and wounded warriors through Bunkers in Baghdad.  On February 16, 2011, the Florida Marlins proved their generosity is second to none.  From the Marlins President, David Samson, to Director of Community Outreach Angela Smith, to the great interns (and everyone in-between) -  their enthusiasm and hard work to raise money and get the awareness out in the community about Bunkers through its Annual Celebrity Golf Tournament was phenomenal.  We are grateful for their kindness and dedication to our mission.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is proud to announce that we will be partnering with the Florida Marlins and the Florida Marlins Community Foundation for their upcoming golf tournament - the Marlins Celebrity Golf Classic. The franchise and its great players have been very generous with Bunkers and have rolled out the red carpet for us. We expect that the collection drive and putting contest at the tournament will be a big hit.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad and the Transitions Championship (Tampa Bay, Florida, March 14-20, 2011) are partnering to help support our soldiers. There will be a collection drive at the event to collect golf balls and golf clubs to send to our soldiers overseas and deliver to wounded warrior programs throughout Florida.

 

Bunkers was proud to partner with the State Department in the creation of an official driving range at the US Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq.  They took care of the construction and we donated the equipment.  Working together we helped create a place where embassy staff and soldiers can escape from the real world for a few moments and relax and hit some balls.  This range was a long time in the making and we are thrilled that is open and in use!

 

Please check out the "My View" piece on Bunkers in Baghdad by Joe Hanna published in The Buffalo News that explains what we do and why we do it. And how our community plays such an important role in our success. tinyurl.com/5r94dhl

 

Happy New Year! Please take a look at our SCRAPBOOK page to see your generosity in action.  We recently received some great new pictures in from Afghanistan and Iraq.  The 43rd Sustainment Brigade demonstrated their ingenuity by creating a driving range using an old parachute!

 

What a year 2010 has been. From sending close to 1 million golf balls to our soldiers overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan and several other countries, to continuing our work with our Wounded Warriors here at home - Bunkers in Baghdad has continued to grow.  We expanded our Bunkers Buddies programs to work with schools throughout Florida, Texas, California and New York.  The students have taken an active role in our charity by volunteering to collect golf equipment, package it and ship it overseas for our soldiers.  Our Bunkers Buddies have also volunteered at various sporting events throughout the country in which our great sports team sponsors have hosted us for.  NHL teams, such as the Chicago Blackhawks, Tampa Bay Lightning, Florida Panthers, and the Atlanta Thrashers have hosted in-game events for the charity.  We have also had the opportunity to work directly with a variety of fine professional golfers like Arnold Palmer and Ray Floyd, NASCAR stars, country music's finest entertainers and TV and movie stars to help Bunkers as well.  From donating their own golf equipment to autographed memorabilia - their support is invaluable to us.

This year also saw Bunkers in Baghdad get profiled in Golfweek, win a Pepsi Refresh Grant, continue to grow our social media efforts on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn and host our 1st golf tournament – The Bunkers in Baghdad Open.

 

And how does Bunkers in Baghdad accomplish all of this?  Only because of you - our generous and caring supporters.  From our grassroots efforts in the community, like our contributors randomly mailing in contributions from across the country, great patriotic Americans like Dick Nelson and Hal Enstice collecting golf balls from all throughout Western New York and drumming up financial support to help us ship all of the golf equipment overseas, equipment drives at golf courses and country clubs around the USA, like Beverly Country Club in Chicago, Illinois, and finally, through our special charity partners like Callaway, Goldberg Segalla and LoudMouth Golf, to name a few, who do so much to support our soldiers day in and day out.

 

At the end of the day - we are here for our Soldiers and Wounded Warriors.  Our daily interactions with soldiers overseas, like our friend Eric Harrison  and others, brighten our days and the progress of the Wounded Warriors that we have helped inspires us.  So as we close 2010 - we want to thank everyone for their on-going support and we look forward to a bigger and better year in 2011.

 

Happy Holidays and a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year.

 

Joe

 

Please check out the scrapbook page for some new photos we've received from friends stationed all around Iraq and Afganistan plus some special shots from Joe's visit with a soldier from Rochester when he was home from Iraq on leave. It was amazing to get a chance to meet one of the real heroes we've had the honor of working with.

 

For the second year in a row, the NHL’s Stanley Cup Champions, the Chicago Blackhawks have included Bunkers in Baghdad as part of their salute to the troops at their home game celebrating Veteran’s Day on November 10, 2010.  The Blackhawks are generously donating the proceeds from their charity 50/50 raffle at the game to Bunkers. We are truly grateful to the Blackhawks and their fans in Chicago for opening their hearts and their wallets in support of our mission.

 

Bunkers is proud to announce that we have been awarded a grant from the Buffalo Renaissance Foundation.  The Buffalo Renaissance Foundation is comprised of local business leaders dedicated to improving our Western New York community.  The grant funds will be used to cover shipping costs of donations headed for soldiers overseas.

 

On October 30, 2010, service members at the Victory Base Complex in northern Baghdad participated in the Armed Forces Network-Iraq Freedom Radio Long Drive Competition and Golf Skills Competition using equipment donated by Bunkers.The competition included a long drive competition in which service members had five attempts to drive a golf ball the longest distance; a closest to the pin competition in which service members had five attempts to land a ball closest to a flag; and the final event in which service members attempted to bounce a golf ball on the face of a golf club similar to Tiger Woods’ commercial. The event took place near one of Saddam Hussein’s Palaces. Service members drove and chipped balls into what was once the former dictator’s private fishing lake. Winners in each category took home clubs donated by Bunkers in Baghdad and bragging rights.

 read more ...

On October 18, 2010, Bunkers was truly honored when Senator Charles Schumer presented us with a proclamation congratulating us on passing the million ball milestone.  This honor belongs to you – our many donors and supporters who made this accomplishment possible.  Without your generosity, we would never have reached our goal. 

 

Subscribe to PGA Magazine? Then make sure you didn’t miss the great article in November’s issue – “Golf Reaches Out to the U.S. Military” that features Bunkers and other fantastic golf related organizations that focus on supporting the troops.  This list demonstrates what we already know – that the golf community is extremely generous and willing to share its love of the game with others.

 

Recently, a small gift from some young golfers made a big impression on troops in Iraq.  We began working with the First Tee of Western New York program based out of Harvest Hill Golf Course in Orchard Park, NY this summer.  In addition to collecting golf balls, the First Tees kids took the time to each decorate individual golf balls for the troops.  This small gesture was extremely meaningful to the soldiers who got the special shipment.  The unit is stationed at a very small base located on the Tigris with few comforts of home. In October they had a “Mandatory Fun Day” with a BBQ and some golf contests using equipment sent by Bunkers.  We received an email from on of the soldiers that the members of his unit were so touched by the golf balls personalized by the First Tee kids that rather than use the balls, many soldiers chose to hold on to them as they remind them of their own children back home.  A small gesture of kindness by children that had a big impact on the brave men and women who risk their lives for us on a daily basis.

 

Happy Veterans Day to all our veterans and active service members. We salute you. Thank you for your service and sacrifice.  Thank you also to the military spouses and families - your sacrifices allowed your loved ones to serve on behalf of all of us.

 

Ever wonder if some old golf balls and clubs can really matter to a soldier in the middle of a combat zone? Take a look at our mail call page and let the soldiers show you in their own words how much your donations mean to them.

 

Did you know - Bunkers in Baghdad is officially two years old! It's amazing to think about what we've been able to accomplish in the past two short years with your help. Thank you to all of our supporters and partners for helping us in our mission to support the troops. Everything we've been able to accomplish is only possible due to the kindness and generosity of others.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is Looking Forward to Working With Our Great Friends at the Tampa Bay Lightning Foundation! On October 20, 2010, Bunkers in Baghdad received a grant from the Tampa Bay Lightning Foundation to continue our hard work in the Tampa Bay Community. We look forward to going all in with the Lightning and joining with Tampa area students through our Bunkers Buddies program to support the troops.

 

Congratulations to our partner - the Chicago Blackhawks on receiving their Stanley Cup Champion Rings!

Bunkers would like to congratulate and thank the Chicago Blackhawk organization for all that they have done for our charity. The Blackhawks recently sent several boxes of hats and t-shirts to distribute to our soldiers overseas. The Blackhawks gear was sent to Task Force Nightmares, 3-1 Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Infantry Division out of Ft. Riley, KS. The reason why this is even more special is because this battalion uses the latest state of the art Blackhawk Helicopters that our military has.

This is another great example of our partners in the community reaching out to help our brave men and women all across the globe.

 

Our great friends at Beverly Country Club (Chicago, IL) and Deerwood Golf Course (North Tonawanda, NY) stepped up in terms of golf equipment donations and fundraising to help us get the golf balls and golf clubs overseas to our soldiers. In recent weeks- the demand from our soldiers was exceeding the supply of golf equipment we had in stock.

Fortunately for us, the great group of people at Beverly Country Club have made the largest donation of golf equipment from the State of Illinois to date. The golf balls and golf clubs will go a long way with our men and women.

And at the end of the day, we can always rely on the generosity of the great people in the Western New York area. Deerwood Golf Course donated more than 5,000 golf balls and more than a hundred golf clubs to send to our soldiers.

Without the generosity of golf courses like these- we would not be able to assist our soldiers and Wounded Warriors like we do. Thank you.

 

When John Daly is wearing those extra special pants from LoudMouth Golf- they are hard to miss... Neither is the generosity from the great people at the company. LoudMouth Golf recently donated 3 large boxes of pants, shorts and skirts for our brave men and women that will be sent overseas in our next shipment of golf equipment.

To check out previous photos of our soldiers hitting a couple of balls overseas in these great pants- check out our Scrapbook page!

 

 

Over the course of the last several weeks - Bunkers has been feverishly working to fill the overwhelming amount of requests from our brave men and women overseas and Wounded Warriors here at home.

Whether we have been working with Wounded Warriors in New Mexico to help set up a golf program for their recreation and rehab or providing golf equipment to the newest units who have deployed to Afghanistan - your support and generosity is what keeps this charity going.

Bunkers (with the help of our recent article in Golfweek Magazine and our good friends at Callaway Golf and Tee It Up for the Troops) has surpassed the 1.5 million golf ball plateau!

 

Mail Call has been updated.  Check out the latest batch of letters/emails we've received recently from Iraq and Afghanistan. If you've ever wondered how your support of Bunkers makes a difference, take a moment to read some of these notes, they explain it better than we ever could...

 

We would like to thank all of our friends, volunteers, sponsors and donors for coming out and making the First Bunkers in Baghdad Open a true success. When the day started it looked like we would be dealing with St. Andrews weather conditions- but fortunately from when we hit our first drive to when we knocked in our last putt- the weather cooperated.

The generosity of Callaway, Pepsi, Bacardi, Goldberg Segalla, Bryant and Stratton, Bose, the Chicago Blackhawks, the United States Marines, the Boston Celtics, Ray Floyd, Arnold Palmer, Marcel Dionne, the Florida Panthers, Kendall Simmons, the Buffalo Sabres, the Tampa Bay Lightning, Certo Brothers Distributing, Jeff Foxworthy, Big Bird and the rest of the gang from Sesame Street, truly was very much appreciated. A big thank you also to the wonderful staff at Arrowheard Golf Club and Rothland for helping our day run smoothly.

 

The announcement was a little delayed due to all the paperwork, but its official - Bunkers in Baghdad won a $5,000 grant from the Pepsi Refresh Project!  We would like to thank all of our friends and supporters who put us over the top to help bring home the money. We will be able to use the grant money right away in sending out some of our largest shipments to date this week.

 

Make sure you check out the great article on Bunkers in Baghdad in the Forecaddie section of this week's issue of Golf Week Magazine (on newstands July 2, 2010).  The feature is already generating a good deal of buzz around the country for Bunkers and will hopefully lead to great things in the future!

 

As we  celebrate this holiday weekend with family, friends and fireworks, we can't forget to take a moment to thank the brave men and women who serve our country and protect the freedoms that make America the special place that it is.  Happy Birthday America. We are thankful for the freedoms that we all enjoy as Americans and are especially thankful for those that sacrifice time with their own loved ones to ensure those freedoms for the rest of us.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad would like to thank the members of our Armed Forces, those on active duty everywhere around the world, and all the veterans, for their service and for all they do to protect our freedoms everyday.  We remember the fallen who made the ultimate sacrifice and honor their bravery.  We're also grateful to all of the military spouses and families who make their own sacrifices every time their loved ones leave to protect us all.  We hope everyone has a great holiday, but most importantly, a safe holiday.

 

We are getting closer every day to winning a $5,000 grant from the Pepsi Refresh Project.  Only the top ten ranked projects will receive a grant.  Voting ends May 31, 2010 so it is extremely important that you vote every day.  Please click the link to the right to vote for us and help us win a grant! $5,000 will get a lot of boxes out the door!

 

Thanks to everyone in the windy city who came out to our Bunkers in Baghdad Happy Hour on April 30th at The Gage.

We would like to thank Tim Epstein and his many great volunteers for helping put together a very successful event to help support our soldiers and Wounded Warriors. Bunkers would also like to thank the great Marines who came out to support the cause as well as our special guest of honor Cpt. Sara Leakey, who recently returned home from serving our country in Iraq.

The generosity of many individuals and businesses in the Chicago area is what made this event a true success. SmithAmundsen LLP, the Chicago Blackhawks, The Gage, Tavern at the Park, LEYE, The Rice Table, Pitchfork Music Festival, Mike Reed, Gemini Bistro, Anje Schaeffer, Mary Franklin, Elliot Bares, and Sgt. Michael Bubb of the US Marine Corps all donated wonderful prizes/packages to our silent auction.

 

Bunkers is in the running for a $5,000 grant from the Pepsi Refresh Project.  Please vote for us - just click the link to the right.  You can vote everyday and the top ten vote-getters each month will win the money. 

 

We would like to thank Callaway for stepping up to the tee and sending us another 15,000 golf balls. With the help of some great volunteers from Canisius High School - Bunkers will be able to get these golf balls out to over 10 different bases that have made requests for golf equipment.

 

Thank you to our newest sponsor - LoudMouth Golf - for donating a lot of great apparel to send to our soldiers overseas. LoudMouth is the company responsible for making John Daly's great golf pants and the pants for the Norwegian Curling Team from this year's Olympics in Vancouver. www.loudmouthgolf.com

 

On Tuesday, April 6, 2010, Bunkers in Baghdad and the Atlanta Thrashers teamed up to raise money through a 50-50 raffle for much needed shipping funds to send golf balls and golf clubs to our soldiers stationed overseas in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The student volunteers from Spelman College and Emory University were a great help in selling raffle tickets. We would also like to thank the wonderful volunteers from Matson, Driscoll and Damico.

We look forward to working with the Atlanta Thrashers in the future.

 

If you use twitter, follow us! We're now tweeting as "bunkerstweets".

Just click the follow me button on the right side of this page, or find us on Twitter by searching either "Bunkers in Baghdad" or "bunkerstweets". 

 

Bunkers would like to thank all of the NHL teams that we worked with this year. Their generosity and kindness has gone a long way in helping our soldiers and Wounded Warriors.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad, in conjunction with Erie County, New York, is proud to announce that for the second year in a row - we will be donating a sleeve of free golf balls to any veterans or active military who golf at either of the Erie County golf courses- Elma Meadows or Grover Cleveland. Golfers only need  to show proof of service to receive the golf balls.

In 2009 we were able to distribute golf balls to over 3,000 local veterans and active military personnel in the area. We look forward to helping even more this year.

 

We recently participated in a successful event with the NHL’s Florida Panthers on Saturday, March 20, 2010. This event was especially rewarding due to the participation of high school students from the Ft. Lauderdale/Miami area. Students from Western High School, Paladin Academy and Piper High School worked extremely hard to sell 50-50 raffle tickets to raise money to ship golf equipment to our soldiers deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan and to Wounded Warriors across the United States.

In addition to the students, we would like to thank individuals from Goldberg Segalla, LLP; the Notre Dame Club of Ft. Lauderdale; Matson, Driscoll and Damico; Wicker, Smith, O'Hara, McCoy and Ford, P.A.; Mastriana & Christiansen, PA; and Nova Southeastern University for volunteering on behalf of Bunkers.

The Florida Panthers organization was great to work with and generous with their time and effort in helping support our troops. All of the monies raised will be used to send golf equipment to soldiers overseas stationed at Camp Mike Spann and USF-I Provost Marshal's Office.

 

Check out the newest feature of our website - the Mail Call page.

Mail Call features some of the incredible emails and letters that we have received from soldiers and veterans programs telling us how much your generosity and support means to them.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad participated in a very successful event with the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday, March 6, 2010.   We would like to thank all of our volunteers who helped run the 50-50 raffle held at the Forum which benefited Bunkers. All of the money raised will go to the shipping of golf balls and golf clubs to members of our military who have been deployed from MacDill Air Force Base out of Tampa Bay, Florida.

Information about Bunkers in Baghdad was featured on the Jumbotron several times during the game and there were also several announcements related to the raffle and the Lightning welcoming our organization to the game. The evening brought a great deal of awareness to our charity.

We would like to thank the Lightning for their generosity and kindness. We look forward to working with the Lightning on more projects in the future, including the Lightning Golf Tournament.

 

Bunkers would like to thank St. Stephens School in Grand Island for drawing pictures and writing letters to our soldiers overseas and collecting over 1,500 golf balls to send to our brave men and women. This brings Bunkers' total to 968,000 golf balls and over 25,000 golf clubs.

 

On Saturday, March 6, 2010, the Tampa Bay Lightning will be hosting a "Bunkers in Baghdad Night." The team will hold a 50-50 raffle for us and the Lightning will also be hosting us in the Plaza before the game- we will have a table set up with free giveaways and information about Bunkers so if you're in Tampa, please stop by and show your support.

 

Bunkers is honored to have been invited to participate in The Greenbrier Classic's Badges for Charity program.  Now you can support Bunkers while seeing the best golfers in the world at The Greenbrier Classic - an official stop on the PGA Tour and part of the FedExCup Series.  Click on the button to the right to go to the Greenbrier Classic site to buy badges.  If you select Bunkers in Baghdad as your charity of choice,  30% of your purchase will be donated to us!

 

We would like to thank JFK Middle School in Cheektowaga, New York for its ongoing support of Bunkers. The students were recently awarded a commendation from the United States Army and continue to collect golf balls and golf clubs for our soldiers stationed overseas and here at home. Check out our Scrapbook page for pictures of the students hard at work packing and shipping the golf balls they collected.

 

With our recent shipments to Iraq and Afghanistan we have sent more than 500,000 of the 965,500 golf balls that you have donated overseas!

 

Bunkers in Baghdad has recently gone over the 25,000 golf club plateau. We have distributed more than 24,500 of these golf clubs to our soldiers overseas and to our brave men and women all throughout the United States.

 

We would like to thank the Dallas Stars and Syracuse Crunch for their generous donations to Bunkers in Baghdad. Their donations of golf balls and golf towels will be sent overseas in our next shipment to go over.

 

Fresh off of hearing from the Florida Panthers - the Atlanta Thrashers will also be hosting a "Bunkers in Baghdad Night" on April 6, 2010 at their home game vs. the New Jersey Devils. This is a great opportunity for the charity to get the word out on how we are going about helping our soldiers and Wounded Warriors. A special thank you to the Atlanta Thrashers and their generosity.  If you're in Atlanta, please come out to the game and say hi.

 

The Florida Panthers will be hosting "Bunkers in Baghdad Night "at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Florida on March 20, 2010 when the Panthers play the Buffalo Sabres. We truly appreciate the Panthers' generosity and commitment to our soldiers.  If you're in the area, please come out and support us, we'd love to see you at the game.

 

Every one of us at Bunkers would personally like to thank all of our generous donors and sponsors who continue to make financial contributions during these tough economic times towards the cost of shipping all of the donated golf equipment to our brave soldiers and wounded warriors across the globe. With your help, Bunkers has distributed golf equipment to all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and 8 countries worldwide (Iraq, Afghanistan, Italy, Germany, Japan, South Korea, Kuwait, and Turkey).

 

After receiving our largest single donation of 2010 from Erie, Pennsylvania of 33,000 golf balls - Bunkers has officially topped the 900,000 golf balls plateau... The countdown is on to 1,000,000!!!

 

At the start of this year - Bunkers set out to work with the United States Embassy in Iraq to help build a driving range for our soldiers and their familes stationed in and around Baghdad. With the help of Callaway, the Chicago Blackhawks, the Colorado Avalanche, King Par Golf, Madewell Products, Goldberg Segalla LLP, IKON, and Transit Middle School - Bunkers has sent over 18,000 golf balls, 550 golf clubs, driving range nets, bag shags, golf towels, Bunkers in Baghdad Banners, and cards and drawing from the students to build a driving range at our US Embassy.

 

We would like to thank Baseball Hall of Fame Great and Detriot Tiger superstar Al Kaline and the rest of the fine folks at Oakland Hills Country Club for donating several hundred golf clubs and 2,000 golf balls to Bunkers in Baghdad.

 

With the help of our friends at Transit Middle School we are sending a shipment of 5,000 golf balls, golf nets and golf ball retrievers to our brave soldiers in Iraq to kick off the first of many large shipments in 2010.

 

Bunkers is proud to announce our new partnership with Callaway Golf. Callaway has donated over 75,000 golf balls and 900 golf clubs  that will be shipped to our brave men and women serving in Iraq and Afghanistan and to Wounded Warriors across the United States.  We are truly amazed by their generous contribution.  We are also thrilled that Callaway has introduced us to the San Diego Metro Schools so we can continue to expand our Bunkers Buddies program.  Thank you Callaway Golf and welcome to the team!

 

 

 

Today marks a special day for Bunkers in Baghdad. With holiday shipments of golf balls and clubs to Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst (formerly Ft. Dix) in New Jersey and the 3rd Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) at Ft. Knox in Kentucky, Bunkers has now made donations to wounded warrior and veterans programs in all 50 States!!!  None of this would have been possible without the incredible generosity of our supporters and partners.  Thank you all! 

Now that we've covered the entire country in 2009, let's see what we can accomplish together in 2010...

 

 

Bunkers would like to thank our friends at the Bob Hope Classic for donating over 4,000 golf balls to us. We are sure that the tournament's namesake would be very proud of all that Bunkers has done to help our soldiers serving our great country and our Wounded Warriors. The 50th Bob Hope Classic hosted by Arnold Palmer will be held in La Quinta, California from January 18, 2010 to January 24, 2010.

 

Bunkers would like to thank all of our supporters and contributors who have helped us go over the 800,000 golf ball and 22,000 golf club plateau!  With your generous support, we will soon reach One Million golf balls!  It is our privilege and honor to help as many soldiers and veterans as we can.

 

When we expanded the Bunkers' mission to include veterans' and Wounded Warriors' programs here at home it became our goal to make a donation to at least one program in each of the 50 states.  We have now shipped donations to 49 out of 50!  This past week, next shipments went out to the following programs:

Sheridan VA Medical Center (Sheridan, Wyoming)

Idaho Veterans Home (Boise, Idaho)

George E. Wahlen Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center (Salt Lake City, Utah)

Billings Vet Center (Billings, Montana)

Raymond G. Murphy VA Medical Center (Albuquerque, New Mexico)

U. S. Army Wounded Warrior Program St. Louis VA Medical Center, Jefferson Barracks Division (St. Louis, Missouri)

Sierra Nevada VA (Reno, Nevada)

 

Thank you to Madewell Products for donating 30 Bag Shags to send to our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.  The Bag Shags were recently sent overseas in several shipments for the holidays. 

 

Bunkers would also like to thank Femco Steel Technology (FST) shaft company for donating 150 shafts and several hats and visors that were sent to Iraq and Afghanistan to our brave men and women serving overseas. The shafts were sent with golf heads donated by Prince Golf. The soldiers will now have the opportunity to construct their own golf clubs during their spare time. So far, the feedback we’ve heard has been great.

 

Bunkers owes a special thank you to the Chicago Blackhawks, Patrick Kane and King Par Golf for their recent Bunkers in Baghdad fundraiser. Through the hardwork and dedication of the Blackhawks and King Par - and the generosity of fans in Chicago - we received a large donation of brand new golf clubs and other golf products to send to our soldiers.

 

A special thank you to Kim Styka and all of our Bunkers Buddies at Transit Middle School who have been working extra hard these past two month packing and coordinating several large shipments to soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan. We hear that your homemade cards and letters are even more popular with the troops than the golf equipment! We're extremely lucky to have you all on the team.

 

We were able to keep up the pace in November.  Thanks to all of your donations, Bunkers was able to keep shipping to wounded warrior and veterans programs across the country. In the past few weeks, shipments were sent out to:

 

John D. Dingell VA Medical Center- Wounded Warrior Program (Detroit, Michigan)

 

VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System- Wounded Warrior Battalion (Ann Arbor, Michigan)

 

Fort Sill Warrior Transition Unit (Fort Sill, Oklahoma)

 

Manchester VA Medical Center (Manchester, New Hampshire

 

Tennessee Valley Healthcare System Wounded Warrior Project (Tennessee)

 

Dover Air Force Base Youth Program (Dover, Delaware)

 

St. Louis VA Medical Center - Jefferson Barracks Division (St. Louis, Missouri)

 

Fort Rucker U.S. Army Warrior Transition Command (Alabama)

 

Aleda E. Lutz VA Medical Center Wounded Warrior Program (Saginaw, Michigan)

 

Omaha VA Medical Center Wounded Warrior Program (Omaha, Nebraska)

 

Indianapolis VA Medical Center Wounded Warrior Program (Indianapolis, Indiana)

 

Ft. Polk US Army Wounded Warrior Program (Ft. Polk, Louisiana)

 

Naval Air Station Brunswick MWRF (Brunswick, Maine)

 

VA Pittsburgh Heath Care System Wounded Warrior Program (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania)

 

Warrior Transition Command Boston VA Medical Center (Boston, Massachusetts)

 

Fort McCoy Morale, Welfare and Recreation (Fort McCoy, Wisconsin)

 

Wounded Warrior Program- VA Connecticut- Newington Campus (Newington, Connecticut)

 

VA Medical and Regional Center (Fargo, North Dakota)

 

Wounded Warrior Transition Unit (Vermont)

 

Des Moines VA Medical Clinic- Wounded Warrior Program (Des Moines, Iowa)

 

Wounded Warrior Transition Unit (Rhode Island)

 

AS ALWAYS, AS LONG AS THE DONATIONS KEEP ROLLING IN, THE SHIPMENTS WILL KEEP ROLLING OUT...

 

 

We are proud to announce that this past October was Bunkers' busiest month ever for shipping.  In addition to sending out 8 new shipments to units in Iraq and Afghanistan, we were also able to ship donations out to several new programs across the country:

Minneapolis VA Medical Center Fisher House (Minneapolis, Minnesota)

Dwight David Eisenhower Army Medical Center Fisher House (Fort Gordon, Georgia

Louis A. Johnson VMAC Wounded Warrior Program (Clarksburg, West Virginia)

Portland VA Medical Center United States Army Wounded Warrior Program (Portland, Oregon)

Wounded Warrior Transition Battalion-Alaska (Fort Richardson, Alaska)

Tripler Army Medical Center Fisher Houses (Honolulu, Hawaii)

VA Puget Sound Fisher House (Seattle, Washington)

Fisher House at Denver VA Medical Center (Aurora, Colorado)

Fisher House Keesler Air Force Base Medical Center (Biloxi, Mississippi)

Fort Campbell Fisher House (Fort Campbell, Kentucky)

As it gets closer to the end of the year, we are gearing up for holiday shipments.  Keep sending in your stuff and we'll keep sending it out!

 

 

Bunkers can now officially take donations over the web through PayPal.  Please visit the "Donate" page for more info and click the PayPal button to make a donation!

 

 

A big THANK YOU to everyone for coming out to the Bunkers Happy Hour on September 25, 2009 at The Steer.  We had a great time raising money for a great cause. The money we raised is going towards shipping over 6,000 golf balls and 20 sets of clubs to the 16th Military Police Brigade in Afghanistan. The unit is based out of Fort Bragg. Their mission includes oversight of detention operations conducted at the Bagram Theater Internment Facility, located at Bagram Airfield and field detention sites located throughout Afghanistan. They assumed their mission on August 15th, 2009, marking the first time a Military Police Brigade Headquarters has deployed to Afghanistan. Service members from the United States Army, Navy, and Air Force serve under Task Force Protector, providing expertise and skills from specialties across the military.

 

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is partnering with Northport VA Medical Center in Northport, New York to provide golf balls and golf clubs to the Wounded Warrior Unit located at the hospital. Several donations have been made by individuals in and around the Long Island area to Goldberg Segalla's Long Island office. My colleague Paul Devine has been gracious enough to help collect, sort through, store and deliver over 2,000 golf balls and 40 sets of clubs. The clubs were recently delivered to the Northport VA where they will be used for the Adaptive Golf Program that will help work with veterans's on their physical, cognitive, social, and emotional skills. The golf equipment will also be used at the Northport Golf Course at the VA Medical Center for the veterans's recreational use.

 

Bunkers recently teamed up with Crosswoods Indoor Golf (2 great locations- Chandler, Arizona and Gilbert, Arizona) to collect golf balls and golf clubs for our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan and our Wounded Warriors here at home. Crosswoods did a phenomenal job of collecting over 3,000 golf clubs and 18,000 golf balls. The golf equipment was distributed to the Arizona National Guard's 3666th Maintenance Company- who were recently deploying to Iraq. The next stage of our partnership between Crosswoods and Bunkers is that we are going to send additional golf clubs and balls to other soldiers with ties to the state of Arizona so they can have some forms of enjoyment during their downtime. Many thanks goes out to Bev and Brad Lefebvre for all of their hard work and dedication to our brave men and women- both here at home and abroad!

 

Bunkers is proud to support the Disabled American Veterans Auxiliary Roll of Honor #120 ("DAVA") and the important work they do in providing support to our disabled veterans.  DAVA will be holding a charity golf outing on July 27, 2009 at Batavia Country Club with proceeds to go to VA WNY Healthcare System, Voluntary Services.  Please check out our calendar for all the details.  To participate, please contact Kathy Tedesco at 716-691-3071.

 

WNY Heroes is a group that assist Veterans and current military personnel and their families.  We're proud to partner with WNY Heroes and to be able to supply their WNY Heroes Golf Outing with golf balls donated by you.  The Golf Outing will be July 25, 2009 at the Niagara County Golf Course.  Check out the calendar for more details.  To participate, call Stephanie Thurston at 716-536-3940.

 

On July 2, 2009, thanks to your generosity, Bunkers will be sending a large shipment out to our friends serving in Iraq - they enjoyed their first shipment so much, they emailed us and asked for more to share!

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is honored that we have been invited to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange this Friday, June 26, 2009.  Joe and the rest of the Bunkers' crew will be on the podium to raise awareness for our mission and for all the other groups out there that serve our troops and their families.  Check back for photos and video from the event.

 

On June 8, 2009, Joe had the privilege of visiting with some of our injured soldiers who have returned home from their service overseas at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas. He then had the opportunity to speak with some of the families staying at one of the Fisher House locations on the Brooke Army Medical Center campus.   Bunkers was proud to be able to supply the Fisher House with golf balls and clubs that you so generously donated.

"The Fisher House program is a unique private-public partnership that supports America's military in their time of need. The program recognizes the special sacrifices of our men and women in uniform and the hardships of military service by meeting a humanitarian need beyond that normally provided by the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs."

 

We would like to thank the Genesee Valley Pennysaver for their fundraising efforts on behalf of Bunkers in Baghdad. The Pennysaver and its generous readers were instrumental in raising money for the charity and collecting several hundred golf clubs and thousands of golf balls.

A special thank you goes out to Lynne Standish for heading up the drive. Also, a special welcome home to her husband Russ who will be returning home from service in Iraq in order to attend his daughter's high school graduation. Thank you for your brave service to this country.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is proud to announce its new partnership with Operation Welcome Home and Recovery and Veterans Outreach Center, Inc. Bunkers will play an integral role in partnering with with the Canandaigua/Rochester VA Medical Centers and Operation Welcome Home and Recovery to launch a new project: "VET REC." This will be recreational therapy available to servicemembers, veterans and their families. Bunkers will initially donate 40 sets of golf clubs and 5,000 golf balls to kick the program off.

 

Bunkers in Baghdad is pleased to announce that we are teaming up with Crosswoods Indoor Golf in Arizona.  Crosswoods is holding a special "Golf for our Troops" event on June 27th at their Chandler, Arizona location to benefit Bunkers in Baghdad and other military charities.  Please check out the calendar page for more information.

 

On Saturday, June 27th and Sunday, June 28th, Bunkers in Baghdad will be at the Boulevard Mall from 11:00 a.m to 6:00 p.m. each day collecting golf equipment and raising funds to send more equipment out to the troops.  We'll be stationed near Sears, please come by and see us!

 

The IRS has declared that Bunkers in Baghdad is now officially a 501(c)(3) public charity with tax exempt status.

 

Thanks to your support and donations, Bunkers was able to send two large shipments of golf balls and clubs off to soldiers in Iraq this week.  We were also able to deliver 20 sets of golf clubs and over 2,000 golf balls to Ft. Bragg (thanks to our loyal volunteer who made the drive down to North Carolina).   The shipment to Ft. Bragg will be distributed with their next deployment.

 

 

 

Bunkers is at it again. Today we sent out over 2,000 golf balls and 750 golf clubs to our brave men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan. To date, we have sent over 47,000 golf balls and 2,000 golf clubs to our soldiers overseas.

 

 

Here at home, we recently sent a large shipment of golf balls and golf clubs to a disabled veteran's association called Sgt. Golf located in St. Petersburg, Florida. Sadly, in December 2008, Sgt. Golf's storage facility was robbed. The thieves stole everything that this veteran's organization had collected. After Walter Reed Army Medical Center contacted us regarding this situation, we decided to reach out to this organization. This past Saturday, the organization hosted a golf tournament for disabled/amputee veterans and was able to distribute the balls and clubs we sent them to these fine men and women.

 

We collected over 50,000 golf balls and 1,500 golf clubs at the Rochester Golf Show over the weekend. This now puts our total number of golf balls collected to over 120,000! 

Special thanks to The Rochester District Golf Association, Jon and Jen Beck, Operations Director Sal El Medawar, Kim Styka, Chris Belter, and the star of the show - Christopher Belter - for all of their hard work in making the show a success. Christopher Belter (Board Member Chris Belter's 8 year old son) worked unbelievably hard in the collection and packing of all of the balls we received on Saturday. 

Thank you to the Upstate NY Golf Shows for inviting us to participate in their show and to all of the Rochester area golfers who visited our booth and generously donated their golf balls and golf clubs to Bunkers in Baghdad.

 

 

On February 16, 2009, Bunkers President Joe Hanna made the trip to Albany, NY to deliver 200 golf clubs and 4,000 golf balls to STRIDE.

STRIDE is a great organization that partners with the Wounded Warriors Disabled Sports Project and Bunkers in Baghdad is proud to join with them in their efforts to give back to our special heroes. 

 

Bunkers in Baghdad has our own group on Facebook.  Join us for a quick and easy way to keep updated on what’s happening with Bunkers.

 

 

 

 

Welcome to the official website of Bunkers in Baghdad.

We’re currently in the process of updating our site so please check back often for updates.