Sunbury, Pa. — The Capital City Bassmasters expect their 15th Annual Leukemia & Lymphoma Society Bass Classic on Sept. 8 will achieve a couple of milestones.
The club expects to exceed over the $200,000 mark in donations to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society since the inception of the benefit tournament, according to Bob Herman, vice president and publicity director of the Capital City Bassmasters. “We have increased the number of boaters competing each year and have raised as much as $19,000 in one year,” Herman said.
The tournament could raise even more money this year because Herman has already registered 100 two-man teams for the event, which would surpass the Classic’s previous highest field of 97 teams.
“We started the Bass Classic as a replacement for a club open tournament we ran for years,” Herman said. “We decided on the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society because for around five years straight we had taken kids afflicted with Leukemia fishing on a morning in late August. We made sure every child caught fish and we gave every child a new rod and reel combo and tacklebox to bring back the following year.”
The Bass Classic pays $3,000 to the winners with the top 10 finishing teams receiving cash and every other team receiving prizes donated by sponsors. Herman said every angler in the tournament receives a goody bag filled with a t-shirt and assorted fishing gear.
Money for the charity is raised through a 50/50 drawing, two trolling motor raffles and donations of cash or prizes from sponsors. Corporate sponsors of the event include the Pennsylvania B.A.S.S. Nation and Bass Pro Shops. Sponsors donating $500 or more will have their company name printed on the t-shirt all of the competitors receive and will be included in all the advertising related to the tournament. Sponsors donating $1,000 or more receive a free boat entry for the fishing team of their choice, and the boat will be included in the first flight at takeoff. The sponsors who donate $1,000 or more may also set up a booth at the event.
An awards ceremony and cookout will be held following the weigh-in. The public is invited to join the celebration and watch the presentation of the club’s check to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Light the Night Campaign for Central Pennsylvania.
For more information about the tournament, call Herman at 717-938-8752 or visit the club’s website at www.capitalcitybass.com.
