Continuing to grow from the success of the event and the quality of the guests who are leaders in the industry, the Garbageman’s Invitational is a great mixture of innovators and talented people coming together to enjoy some golf and fun in the sun.
From 99 attendees to more than 300 and still going strong, the Garbageman’s Invitational has become the premiere golf outing and fundraiser to attend every year. Taking place from June 27 – 29 at the Journey Golf Course at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, CA, this invite-only event connects east and west coast private haulers—including Waste Management, Waste Pro, Waste Connections, Waste Corp., Randy Sanitation and many others—through networking and social opportunities as well as a golf tournament to bring everyone together for some fun in a relaxed atmosphere.
The brainchild of Kerry Holmes, Vice President of Sales for Consolidated Fabricators, Mike Melideo, President and CEO of Consolidated Fabricators and Ray Burke, Vice President of Clean Energy, the Garbageman’s Invitational now brings in companies from all over the country—Texas, Florida, New York, North Carolina, the Midwest and more. Says Holmes, “This year, the registrations are going strong and are on track to surpass the last year’s count. In terms of how this is shaping up nationally, the event’s roots are in the west, but we are bringing in people from all over the country now.”
Adding Some National Flavor
New sponsors this year include Big Truck Rental as a Support Sponsor and Sierra Container Group as a Premiere Sponsor. Mike Schwalbach, President of Sierra Container, explains, “What Kerry and the others have done from the beginning, and what is part of what makes this event special, is a set of high-quality sponsors that Kerry and Ray knew and worked with. From a sponsor standpoint, the Garbageman’s Invitational has been very careful with keeping that number limited and adding any companies to the mix. Sierra Container Group, a company that I started last year, is a new Premiere Sponsor. We are very excited and grateful about being a part of the event and the GMI family.”
“I think there is a lot to this event as far as the camaraderie, the uniqueness as an invite only,” states Schwalbach. “It’s a great way for all of the sponsors to get more exposure in places they haven’t and for Sierra Container, it’s a tremendous way to get our name out there in the market.”
Event Agenda
With an event agenda similar to last year, Tuesday night is the opening party at Blackwater Saloon, featuring live entertainment from Radio Star, with games, a fully catered menu, a soda pop and candy store, a man that makes hand-rolled cigars, people taking tours of the grounds and more. The party starts at 6:30 and even though the crowds start to thin out around 10, according to Holmes, many of them head over to the casino and end up there all night.
On Wednesday, after a shotgun start, guests are golfing while the sponsors are at specific T-Boxes on the course doing games of their own and giveaways. There are three different flights and the tournament will have four winners—one foursome from each flight will win first prize and then there will be eight additional winners for 2nd and 3rd place. The tournament is finished by 1:30, so people can go on tours of the area and it also gives people a few hours to relax and get ready for the golf awards and dinner party held in the Eagles Ballroom at the resort with a cocktail reception held just before in the Eagle’s Nest room. “It is hosted by all of the sponsors and we give away our golf awards and do the presentation of the check to the Environmental Research and Education Foundation (EREF),” says Burke. “Our 2016 Garbageman’s Invitational Master’s Scholarship winner is Serena Pozza.” Pozza, from Yale University, is researching How Closed-loop Production Systems Can Reduce Waste, which aims to best understand what business and regulatory incentives may drive companies to change, by design, their products, processes and business models to bring about closed-loop systems. In her research, she strives to scout, analyze and promote ways for green chemistry and material science to enhance the feasibility of such systems.
The Thursday golf outing is a mixture of sponsors and guests. A fun day of golf, it is a relaxed atmosphere where everyone is amongst their peers and no one is pressured by a large group of sales people that are clamoring to meet them. “The Pechanga Resort and Casino does an incredible job hosting the event. They are currently going through a $500 million+ expansion and it’s going to be completed by the end of 2017,” says Holmes.
In addition to the golf outings, the Garbagman’s Invitational is situated in the middle of Temecula Valley wine country, so the people that don’t play golf can enjoy the surrounding area, including the resort’s casino, spa, old Town Temecula and wine tours. Kerry says that another thing attendees will do is make their trip an extended weekend and go to Disneyland or SeaWorld. “There is plenty to do and people really take advantage of the offerings since they are already out here.”
Prizes and Fundraising
Last year, the 1st Place golfers from each flight received custom pro golf bags with the Garbageman’s Invitational logo and their names embroidered on them. This year, Holmes is looking to do something a little different. “I am currently looking at several options and how to place the logos on them.” He’s also asked all of the sponsors to give out quality prizes at their own golf holes. When a foursome comes to their hole, the sponsors are able to give them directly to the guests, shake their hand, say hello, thank them for coming, etc. Holmes has seen everything from custom t-shirts and hats to golf shoe bags. “It allows the sponsors to market their company because the nice thing is
you get to see all of the participants that come through the golf course. Rush Refuse Systems previously had a $100,000 hole in one in past years, but nobody won, so this year they want to give play money and cash prizes for people that land on a green during par 3. Our sponsors have really stepped it up and brought a lot more quality to the event—it’s really turned out terrific.”
As far as the fundraising for the EREF, donations have been growing each year. Last year, $18,000 was raised and this year, the event is looking to raise $20,000 and so far the event is on track to meet or exceed the goal.
Growing the Quality of the Event
Burke stresses that as an invite only event, the Garbageman’s Invitational is really targeting guests to be executives and decision makers from the big public companies and executives and owners of private companies as well. “The Garbageman’s Invitational has grown from the success of the event, the quality of the event and the quality of our guests. The leaders in the industry are the ones attending this event and people that are the innovators. It’s such great a mixture of talented people that we see every year. We continue to be excited about the future of this event.”
For more information, contact Kerry Holmes, Vice President of Sales for Consolidated Fabricators, at (323) 640-4078 or via e-mail at [email protected]; Ray Burke, Vice President of Clean Energy, at (714) 679-6132 or via e-mail at [email protected]; or Mike Schwalbach, President of Sierra Container Group at (213) 494-6948 or via e-mail at [email protected].