partner snapshot
Community Food Hub, formerly Rancho Cordova Food Locker, in Rancho Cordova, California is working to reshape how food assistance looks and feels in its community. It started with changing the mindset and process of how people facing food insecurity in the community receive food and supportive services. The shift to a “People’s Choice” model necessitated an expansion of both space and programs, including a grocery-store-style food pantry and wraparound services like nutrition classes, job search support, diaper supplies, and bike servicing to help individuals and families thrive.
Community Food Hub in Rancho Cordova, California serves more than 1,500 families a week, three times as many as it served last year.
Serving more than 1,500 families each week, Community Food Hub also offers programs for seniors, students, veterans, and neurodiverse volunteers. “People don’t walk in the door excited to be there, so we greet them with smiles and hugs if they need it,” says Debbie Holden, Vice President of Expansion and Development at Community Food Hub.
“Almost 80% of the population we serve are working poor and families, and 20% are seniors with fixed incomes.”
With the support of the City of Rancho Cordova, local businesses, organizations, and volunteers, the organization is expanding into a new 6,600-square-foot facility that will transform a once-blighted property into a vibrant resource for the community. “We’re so grateful for the community’s support. It’s going to change the neighborhood in the best way,” Debbie says.
the challenge
In 2024, a leadership class sponsored by the Rancho Cordova Chamber of Commerce launched the FORE! Feeding Families Golf Tournament as a class project to raise funds for the Community Food Hub.
But once the class ended, sustaining the golf event fell mostly to Debbie, along with a small group of staff and volunteers. The goal for the event’s second year was ambitious: to increase the previous year’s proceeds by $5,000 or more to help them purchase a refrigerated truck as part of the Community Food Hub’s food recovery efforts.
With a small planning team and the need to grow the tournament’s financial impact, Debbie needed tools and support to help her pull it all off.
The FORE! Feeding Families golf tournament grew out of a leadership class sponsored by the Rancho Cordova Chamber of Commerce.
the solution
Carrie Johnson, Community Food Hub’s Executive Director, had received emails about GolfStatus, which were forwarded to Debbie as she embarked on planning. “I’m not a halfway person,” Debbie explains. “I needed all the resources I could get to help.” She connected with the GolfStatus team and liked what she heard about the platform’s potential for time savings and revenue generation. “After talking with GolfStatus, I said to myself, ‘This couldn’t be bad,’” Debbie says.
As a nonprofit entity, Community Food Locker qualified to use GolfStatus at no upfront cost through the Golf for Good program. With support from GolfStatus’ team, including hands-on guidance from on-staff PGA Professionals and quick responses to questions, Debbie was able to confidently manage everything in one place: registrations, sponsorships, team pairings, and more.
For Debbie, who describes herself as “not a techie person,” GolfStatus provided a user-friendly, one-stop shop for the FORE! Feeding Families event. “It wasn’t as difficult as I thought it would be,” she says. “I wanted to make the tournament as fun as possible for golfers and raise funds, and GolfStatus helped keep me organized.”
The pin flags gave the tournament a professional feel. The flags included the sponsor logo on one side and the Community Food Hub on the other.
the results
FORE! Feeding Families exceeded expectations on every front. With 88 golfers and 24 sponsors, the event raised nearly $50,000. These funds will go a long way toward the purchase of a refrigerated food truck, which will be used to recover fresh food from local grocery stores and ensure thousands of families have access to nutritious food.
In addition to raising critical funds, the tournament helped strengthen community ties. Local officials, corporate partners, and business leaders came out in full support, positioning Rancho Cordova Food Locker/Community Food Hub as a cornerstone of the Rancho Cordova Community. Golfers and sponsors alike walked away impressed by the tournament's professional feel, smooth execution, and connection to the mission.
The tournament’s website made it easy to register teams, sell sponsorships, and provide digital sponsor exposure.
technology boosts efficiency & professionalism
A key factor in the tournament’s success was GolfStatus, which provided a streamlined, all-in-one platform to plan and execute the tournament:
Online Registration. Golfers and sponsors registered and paid on the tournament’s website, which saved Debbie time and cut down on the need to manage emailed names and check payments.
Sponsor Exposure. Sponsors earned digital exposure as soon as they purchased their packages on the event website, giving supporters the recognition they deserved and elevating the tournament’s professional feel.
Custom Pin Flags. The pin flags provided by GolfStatus blew Debbie, the sponsor, and even the golf course staff away. The flags included the sponsor logo on one side and the Community Food Hub on the other.
“The pin flags were unbelievable! It made it feel like we were at a pro tournament,”
Backend Management. Debbie could instantly get a clear view of registrations, sponsorships, and payments in the software’s backend, helping her stay organized throughout the planning process.
Responsive Support. GolfStatus’ in-house support team was there every step of the way. Debbie says the team was super responsive and provided easy-to-understand answers to her questions. “They encouraged me and cheered me on,” says Debbie.
Revenue Boosters. Along with pin flags, the tournament sold GolfStatus’ exclusive Technology Sponsorship and utilized its hole-in-one contest offering to drive additional revenue.
confidence for the future
The community's need for the Community Food Hub’s support and services has grown exponentially over the past several years, with the organization serving nearly three times as many households as it did just a year ago. “Every dollar counts,” says Debbie, explaining that the golf tournament helps bring in mission-critical funds. The Food Locker’s new facility, along with the refrigerated truck, will help even more people facing food insecurity in Rancho Cordova.
Using GolfStatus helped lay a solid foundation for the tournament’s future. Debbie came away with new confidence, valuable lessons learned, and a clear vision for how to grow the tournament in the coming years. “Once you see the end results, you know what you need to do to get there,” Debbie says.
“Now that I’ve planned the tournament from A to Z, I can set the groundwork for the next tournament, which will include GolfStatus.”
golf for good with golfstatus
GolfStatus powers charity golf tournaments and fundraisers of all types, sizes, and formats. Through the Golf for Good program, nonprofits like the Community Food Hub can qualify for access to GolfStatus’ tournament management software at no upfront cost. Nonprofits get a free event website, golf event-specific tools and solutions, revenue-boosting sponsorships and tournament add-ons, a responsive support team (including consultations with Fundraising Specialists), and much more. Start your tournament management journey by booking a meeting with the GolfStatus team today!