Sara Drenner and the Carter-Drenner-KALMS Foundation

Golf really isn’t Sara Drenner’s game. But helping kids is, which is why she signed up as the Director of Fundraising for the Carter-Drenner-KALMS Foundation. And, yes, that means she’ll once again be organizing the nonprofit’s annual charity golf tournament, to its newly rescheduled date of May 21, 2021, at Oak Creek Golf Club in Irvine.

“I grew up around golfing. My dad played and my brother had a longtime dream of becoming a professional golfer and even went to college for it,” she says, before admitting: “I really don’t belong on the golf course. It’s not my strong suit.”

Started nearly a decade ago by Drenner’s father, Mark Drenner, and his friend/business partner, Ed Carter, the foundation provides funds to public and private schools to pay for much needed educational supplies, such as Chromebooks or iPads in the classroom, along with upgrades to playground and sports equipment. Other efforts include helping kinship families and caregivers with everything from providing funds to launch a support group to buying furniture for a family that was previously homeless.

One of the foundation’s beneficiaries has been the Seneca Family of Agencies, which provides mental health services for children and families throughout Orange County. Recently, Seneca was awarded more than $3,000, including $1,000 to help a family pay off medical debt.

“It feels like a dream come true when an organization like Carter-Drenner comes in and offers to help,” says Carly Visbal, the development manager at Seneca. “I would describe them as a fairy godmother to us.”

Since Mark Drenner and Carter both enjoyed hitting the links, starting an annual golf tournament seemed like the ideal way to fund the foundation’s efforts. Sara Drenner jumped in with both feet in 2017.

“I wanted to help kinship children, whether it’s through foster or adoption,” she says. “I also had a higher motivation, because I was raising my two nephews, who were attending schools in Orange. I saw the need for funding for various things.”

Drenner adopted her nephews this year and is now busy organizing the next tournament. She’s hoping for a full field of 144 golfers. The cost is $250 per person, with a $25 discount per golfer for a foursome.

“We have all of our fundraising eggs in that one basket,” she says. “We would love to do more and are always looking for volunteers so we can do more, but the foundation’s team is currently so small, it’s just not feasible. We all have regular jobs, but this is our passion.

Carter-Drenner-KALMS Foundation
714-323-6342