By Caitlin Terry

The Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills announced recently a gift of $500,000 from one very generous donor: the Dedman Family. The family, through Pinehurst Resort & Country Club, helped the Club open its doors nearly 25 years ago with a gift of the same amount.

The Dedman Family’s generous investment pushes the Club within $500,000 of its total goal of $2.9 million for the Building Great Futures Campaign. This multi-faceted campaign drives the organization forward to meet the ever-growing needs of the young people in Moore County, specifically through academic success, good character and citizenship, and healthy lifestyle programs. The Dedman Family believes their gift encourages the community to step up and support the Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills to raise the remaining $500,000.

“Our family has been impressed with the impact the Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills has had on the youth within Moore County and would like to be a catalyst for others to help complete the capital campaign. We’re proud to be a part of this community and helping others succeed,” says Bob Dedman, CEO of Pinehurst Resort.

The Dedman Family has owned Pinehurst Resort since 1984. In 1999, Robert Dedman, Sr. donated $500,000 of the proceeds from the U.S. Open held at Pinehurst No. 2 that year. This gift helped the Boys & Girls Club begin serving children and teens in Moore County almost 25 years ago. Mr. Dedman’s wife, Nancy, and son, Robert Dedman, Jr., were the guests of honor at the Club’s 20th Anniversary Gala in 2018 when they made another generous gift to help the Club fund a new bus for safe transportation of Club members.

“I have seen the long-lasting impact of the Dedman family philanthropy on the lives of not only our members but also all youth in Moore County who have benefited from our programs and dedicated staff members over the years. How fitting that word of their newest historic gift was shared with Chris Grimm, capital campaign chair, and me as we approach the Club’s silver anniversary,” says Dr. Fallon Brewington, outgoing Chief Executive Officer.

With the help of the Building Great Futures Campaign, the Logan-Blake Unit on Highway 5 in Pinehurst was acquired and renovated. This facility, which is on the Dedman Family Campus of the Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills, provides more space for the Club to serve young people during summer camp and out-of-school time. The Logan-Blake Unit, which serves young people in kindergarten through fifth grade who were relocated from the old Aberdeen Elementary School Unit, opened in January of this year.

The campaign has also helped the Club to relocate the Trinity Performing Arts Unit from the space quickly outgrown at Trinity AME Zion Church to the campus of Moore Montessori School in Southern Pines, giving kids in kindergarten through fifth grade attending Southern Pines area schools a place to go summer and during out-of-school time as well.

Ultimately, these moves allow the Baxter Teen Center Unit location to be dedicated to serving youth attending middle and high school.

The Building Great Futures Campaign is centered on three critical areas of growth, impact, and sustainability. Now that the Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills has established the physical capacity needed for growth, the focus now shifts to the impact and sustainability of the Club as the leading youth-serving organization in Moore County. The Club is committed to serving more youth than ever, making a greater impact. With more support, this is not a possibility, but a certainty.

The Dedman Family gift coupled with community support from donors can help propel the Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills’ Building Great Futures Campaign across the finish line by December 2022 to make a difference for more youth, more often, with a deeper impact. The Boys & Girls Club of the Sandhills accepts charitable donations of any size on its website or by calling 910-692-0777.