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Vern Hollister - Correspondent

The Laona Quarterback Club's traditional golf outing-steak fry and fundraiser Saturday has evolved into as great an alumni gathering as it is a charitable event. Though the goal is to raise money for athletics and youth teams in one massive undertaking, returning to be with friends is also a driving force.

"It's kind of a gathering," QB Club president Jim Aschinger, Jr. said. "There were a lot of teams with relatives."

None revealed that camaraderie more than five friends decked out in yellow T-shirts and sporting red, white and blue Uncle Sam hats in honor of Flag Day, June 14, when the outing occurred. Each of them wore names, "none of them bad," one said, by which they were known. Meat, Lane-O, Koch, Polack and Eko golfed in the morning when the weather is nicer, they said, and have done so since 1994. Two live in Laona, the rest do not. "We grew up here, we played stick wars together, we had pellet gun fights, we played sports together," they said. Four years ago they took first, but this time around they came in at five under, not good enough to lead the pack.

Hi-jinks, easy laughter, were commonplace. The second shift collection of golfers lined up in their carts and waited for the morning golfers to finish, not seeming to mind a late start. One pair in a cart pulled ahead, only to have their clubs fall back while a couple golfers snickered nearby. It appeared suspicious that the two would not have secured their clubs, but it, in retrospect, was more likely a case of tampering.

With sunshine after long days of rain lifting spirits, fifteen teams played the morning rounds at $65 per person, and 29 teams registered for the afternoon at $70. Two teams of women golfers registered, and at least one co-ed group. Even a price break didn't even out the shifts. Most intended to go directly from the golf course to the Laona fire station for the steak fry, raffles, an auction for a wealth of donations and an eventual dance. Deejay Greg Tallier served as auctioneer and dancemaster.

Winning teams in the morning and in the afternoon received $250 for first, $150 for second, $100 for finishing third. Also, during each shift, every hole on the course featured a prize. The regular number nine hole offered a Chevy Malibu for a hole-in-one. Once more, the vehicle donated by Rhinelander General Motors went unclaimed.

The day that began at 5:30 for workers, from the registration table to food servers at the course to food preparers at the fire station, ended near the midnight hour. Way back when the Quarterback Club began in the 1970's, members cut wood according to Jim Aschinger, Sr., father of the current president. The senior Aschinger said they did that for about three years as a way to raise money, at first for lights for the football field. Twenty years ago, the golf outing began. In one day, plus planning and preparing, the group could make enough to outdo a year-long effort of small sales events. Over and done. Approximately $15,000 was raised during the one-shot event to raise money.

The club has provided uniforms for teams, built a softball field and recently donated $900 toward the youth wrestling program. They are also purchasing T-shirts for the Laona Souper Run. One source said that the school system now depends on the Quarterback Club to equip teams.

"We're still working on our ballfield," Aschinger, Jr. said. "We gave out nine scholarships this year that range from 100 to 400 dollars, depending on the years they played a sport."

Food preparers, predominately women from the QB club, took their familiar spots to serve the accompanying salads and baked potatoes to go with the ribeye. Outside, Aschinger, Sr. and Jim Gilligan grilled the steaks, as they have for years. This year, Laona school administrator Dave Aslyn took a turn and served as chef in training for a time.

"Everything went pretty smoothly," Aschinger, Jr. said.

The number of teams were down, and the golfer total dropped from 225 to 210, not a large fall-off considering the economy. At ten p.m., Tallier was still auctioning items, the dance yet to come.

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