CONRAD — When a small group of friends from the Conrad area came together over a decade ago to launch a charity golf tournament and donate the proceeds to assist individuals suffering from cancer, they had no idea if it would be a one-off event and whether they’d even be able to fill out an 18-team roster. Fast forward 10 years, and Tee Up to Beat Cancer is bigger than ever.

To celebrate the milestone anniversary, the TUTBC board of directors is bringing out all the stops on Saturday at Oakwood Golf Course including lunch for both flights, food trucks like Most Wanted Coffee, Ally’s Sandwiches and Wraps and Fattee’s Tenderloins, a live auction featuring four unique experiences donated by Conrad community members and a musical performance by popular local band Grand Marshall.

Shannan Callaway and her husband Ryan played a major role in launching TUTBC, and it came from a personal place. Their son Ray, who has now been cancer free for over a decade and graduated from BCLUW High School in 2022, was battling the disease as a child after being diagnosed in 2012.

“It was an opportunity for us to come together and pay back the community and help others because they helped us, and there are numerous people on the board that have had hard fought battles with cancer either personally or through family relationships,” Shannan Callaway said of the inaugural tournament in 2014. “Ten years have gone by super fast.”

While Ray was able to put his cancer in the rearview mirror, the organizers behind TUTBC knew there were plenty of others facing similar battles. Shannan Callaway commented that childhood cancer cases often garner more widespread attention and sympathy, but adults tend to fight more silently.

“We wanted to be able to make a difference in the community, whether it’s a silent difference, if they don’t want anybody to know, or if it’s more vocal or in the public eye,” she said. “Originally, (Tee Up to Beat Cancer) was just focused on supporting individuals, and then it expanded to local charities. And it’s important to us that those charities are also supporting folks locally.”

Ryan Callaway added that the event is comprised of likeminded people who wanted to come together to support the community. Fellow board member Todd Schnathorst, who has been involved with TUTBC since the beginning, recalled the early struggles of making sure they’d be able to fill out the roster, but they’ve now reached a point where they have to manage the entries because so many people are signing up each year. As Schnathorst explained, most of the teams from the 2023 tournament immediately signed up for the following year.

“Last year, we were up to 27 in an 18-hole tournament, which gets to be (tough). We’re appreciative of all the support, but we actually had to turn people away,” he said. “It’s an opportunity to bring people into town. There’s a lot of stuff going on in town, and there’s a lot of stuff going on at the golf course — the beautiful deck addition is out here, which will get used Saturday, plus the lights will be on Saturday night. So we’re gonna take advantage of the resources we have at Oakwood here.”

After the 2023 tournament, Schnathorst said board members made a “blind promise” that the 10-year anniversary would feature two flights, a live band and food trucks. Once again, they made it happen, arranging what will likely go down as one of the biggest events in Oakwood’s — and the city of Conrad’s — history and appealing to more than just golfers with the wide array of entertainment and offerings.

God willing, they’ll have a chance to celebrate 20, 25 and maybe even 50 year anniversaries of the tournament in the years to come. A few board members have come and gone, but their shoes have been filled by enthusiastic new individuals like Alli Lenehan and Craig Smith, who are both in their first year of service.

“We all have a passion for it. The neat thing is (that) the ball is rolling to the point where it’s getting to be automatic. I mean, there’s still a lot of work, don’t get me wrong, but the momentum is gaining. We have people that are giving us donations now because they see what’s happened in the community,” Schnathorst said. “It’s the BCLUW district and the surrounding towns… We’ve helped over 120 people, which is an awesome number and also a sad number (because) that many people in this area have been inflicted with cancer. So it’s a double edged sword there, but as long as I have a group like this and these people, we’ll continue to do it.”

And while the tournament itself has raised thousands of dollars for those suffering from cancer over its 10 year run, the board members say the moral and emotional support they’ve been able to provide has been every bit as meaningful as they often receive thank you letters.

Tee Up to Beat Cancer is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, and anyone interested in learning more can visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/teeuptobeatcancer. Donations can be made to the Venmo account @teeuptobeatcancer. The first group of golfers will tee up at 7:30 a.m. and the second group at 12:45 p.m. with Fattee’s and Ally’s on hand from 5 to 8 p.m., Grand Marshall playing from 7 to 11 p.m. and tournament winners and morning & afternoon pin prize winners announced along with a TUTBC Anniversary Toast and a live auction starting at 8 p.m.