To the Editor:

Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC) recently held its fourth annual Links to Youth Golf Outing at the Fox Hollow Golf Club in Branchburg, NJ. The event raised more than $42,000, which will enable middle and high school students from low-income communities to attend our award-winning, weeklong Summer Bridge Program free of charge. The Summer Bridge Program helps nearly 550 students lessen summer learning loss and build critical 21st Century skills like communication, collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking at our 264-acre campus in Blairstown.

Seventy golfers participated in this year’s event, with more than a dozen additional PBC supporters joining us for the evening’s awards presentation, dinner, and cocktails. The winning foursome included Christopher Campbell of Summit; William Charlton of New Vernon; Robert Jones of Summit and Mark Meyer, both of Summit. In addition, the first Ev Pinneo Award, an award given to a staff or volunteer who has gone above and beyond in their dedication and commitment to the mission of the Princeton-Blairstown Center, was presented to Jim Huffman of Princeton Junction.

PBC empowers young people, primarily from under-resourced communities, to strengthen their social-emotional skills through experiential, environmental, and adventure-based programming. We collaborate with schools, university partners, and community organizations to help develop self-awareness, responsible decision-making, teamwork, and leadership skills in the youth we serve.

Many thanks to our sponsors: Mark Antin; Bank Direct Capital Finance; Brown & Brown/Sobel Affiliates of Garden City, Inc.; Bryn Mawr Trust; Fraser Advanced Information Systems; Gennett, Kallman, Antin, Sweetman & Nichols; Harris Rand Lusk; Inside Edge Consulting Group, Inc.; Yvette Lanneaux & Michael Nissan; Mazza Recycling; NJ CAR; Northfield Bank; Bruce Petersen; Pinneo Construction; PBC Senior Leadership Team; PNC Bank; The Princeton Corridor Rotary Club; Tamara Simpkins Franklin; Suman Rao & Kaushik Arunagiri; Unlimited Silkscreens, Inc.; and Chris Van Buren.

It takes a great team to plan and execute a successful event. Thank you to Co-Chairs Sarah Tantillo and Derek Simpkins; Auction Chair Margaret Johnson; PBC staff members Meredith Murray and Maren Morsch; and the Links to Youth Golf Committee. Because of their efforts students from Trenton, Newark, and Camden will have the opportunity to learn and grow this summer.

Pam Gregory
President & CEO