WHHF 2013 Shooter Showdown Event

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – January 21, 2013 – The second annual Shooter Showdown, an innovative charitable event that aims to raise funds for Winter Haven Hospital’s Emergency Department, will be held on Friday, February 1 at the Fishhawk Sporting Clays facility in Lithia.

The Shooter Showdown is a unique only-one-of-its-kind event for the Winter Haven Hospital Foundation, which has many supporters and philanthropic leaders who also happen to be sporting clays enthusiasts.

Lynn Oakley, planning committee member and a member of the Winter Haven Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees, states: “Our inaugural event last year was a great success and gave us many reasons to believe that the Shooter Showdown will grow into one of Polk County’s premier annual charitable events. And at the same time, it helps us support the thousands of men, women and children who are treated each year at Winter Haven Hospital's Emergency Room.”

For the uninitiated, sporting clays is a form of clay pigeon shooting that is often described as “golf with a shotgun,” said William “Bill” Murrell, planning committee member and a member of the Winter Haven Hospital Board of Trustees.

“Sporting clays is considered by experienced shooters to be more challenging than trap shooting or skeet shooting because it involves shooting clay targets at multiple stations,” Murrell said. “Unlike trap and skeet, which are games of repeatable target presentations, sporting clays targets are launched from throwing machines in a variety of trajectories, angles, speeds, elevations and distances.”

“The Fishhawk Sporting Clays facility is one of Florida’s premier shooting-sports venues,” said Alan Gustafson, planning committee member and a member of the Winter Haven Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees. “It should be a great Friday out with friends.”

The facility resides on 77 acres of pristine woodland in the well-known FishHawk district of east Hillsborough County, about an hour’s drive west of Winter Haven, Gustafson said, and offers two courses configured to accommodate both novice and experienced shooters. Visit http://www.fishhawksportingclays.com for more information.

Eric Adamson, chairman of the Winter Haven Hospital Foundation Board of Trustees, said: “We are very privileged to be able to offer the unique opportunity to take part in an event at such a top-ranked facility like Fishhawk Sporting Clays. Our thanks go out to everyone who has had a role in creating this event.”

The Winter Haven Hospital Emergency Department is managed through a unique partnership between the hospital and the University of Florida College of Medicine/Shands Healthcare. The partnership was launched in 2003 and brought about an expanded group of fulltime Emergency Department physicians, each based in Winter Haven and employed by the University of Florida. It has resulted in a focused effort by UF and Winter Haven Hospital administrators on implementing systematic improvements in the delivery of emergency care services and integration of emergency care with other patient care services.

Lance Anastasio, president and CEO of Winter Haven Hospital, said: “The ER is where care begins for more than 60 percent of our patients. So on behalf of the ER’s medical staff, nurses and technicians, I want to express our thanks to the Foundation trustees who have created this fun and innovative event to create more resources for our community’s emergency department.”

The event will begin at 11 a.m. on Friday, February 1 with registration of participants. A catered lunch will begin at noon. Shooting begins at 1 p.m. An awards presentation will begin at 3:30 p.m. A four-member team is offered for a sponsorship of $1,000. For more information on Shooter Showdown event sponsorship opportunities, call Holly Hughes at the Winter Haven Hospital Foundation, (863) 292-4138.

About the Winter Haven Hospital Foundation

The Winter Haven Hospital Foundation, Inc. is a not-for-profit charitable institution governed by a board of volunteer trustees who serve without pay. The Foundation cultivates philanthropic support to provide patients with state-of-the-art medical care, cutting-edge technology and equipment, top quality education, and the best educated and trained personnel. Funds raised support the not-for-profit patient care mission of Winter Haven Hospital.

About Winter Haven Hospital

Established in 1926, Winter Haven Hospital serves as the major medical center for east Polk and Highlands counties and the U.S. Highway 27 / Ridge Corridor. The 527-bed hospital is a locally owned and operated not-for-profit organization. The hospital is fully accredited by the Joint Commission and has more than 300 board-certified physicians on its medical staff representing every major specialty. Affiliated with the University of Florida College of Medicine/Shands Healthcare, Winter Haven Hospital also is the home of Bostick Heart Center, the Cassidy Cancer Center, the Regency Center for Women & Infants, the Center for Urology and the Robotics Institute, a nationally accredited Stroke Center and the nationally accredited Joy-Fuller Rehab Center. The hospital has been recognized by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) with the prestigious designation of Magnet status, recognition granted to only 5 percent of the nation’s hospitals. With more than 2,500 employees, Winter Haven Hospital is east Polk County’s largest private employer and has been recognized by Polk Works Workforce 2020 as one of the county’s best places to work. For more information, please visit our Web site at www.winterhavenhospital.org.

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