Kraft Nabisco Gives Back to Coachella Valley

The Kraft Nabisco wrapped up play nearly three months ago, but the tournament’s still making an impact on the desert.

Tournament officials returned to the Coachella Valley to donate money to many local non-profit organizations. “The great thing about this program is it’s open and inclusive, any non profit can be part of it,” said Kraft Nabisco Tournament director Gabe Codding. “All these local charities can be part of this great event, and it can not only be staged on a great course like Mission Hills, but can also give back to all these non profits in the desert here.”

The program is possible due in large part to Integrated Wealth Management. They sponsor the “Tickets Fore Charity” program. “We’re all after the same thing, which is to help the needy people in this valley,” said president and CEO Jim Casey. “From a charity perspective, I think it’s important because we can all compare stories, and also from a tickets for charity perspective, share a way that they can help themselves, help raise money.”

The tournament directors held a luncheon for the charities and passed out checks for their organizations. The lunch was held at the Lulu California Bistro in Palm Springs. The restaurant will not open until later in the summer, so it was a sneak peek for all of those in attendance.

In addition to the money earned from tickets, Integrated Wealth Management also divvied up $25,000 between the charities. The donations come at a time when many non-profits are struggling due to the economy. “Well to have a national organization like Kraft Nabisco certainly means a lot to all of our causes, as we’re seeing the economy recover,” said Ivy Lewis from The Living Desert. “We did have a bad 2008, but it has gotten a lot better this last year.”

“You know, especially in this economy, ticket sales were tough this year, and they just took that many extra steps beyond to help us even further,” agreed Linda Long from the Unforgettables.

The program raised over $17,000, surpassing last year’s amount. They hope to continue to see growth. “It’s nice for us to see numbers for charities go up each year, because the ones who put in a lot of effort, it’s not a lot of effort, they get the results,” said Casey.

The Kraft hopes to see continual growth until they have a million dollar project.