2013 was a lucky year for Rolling Hills Casino & Resort and Tehama County. We hosted a number of events that raised thousands of dollars to make our community healthier, safer, and more educated. We supported community events that promoted education and economic development to make this region a better place to live and visit. Employees got in the charitable giving spirit as well with an in-house fundraiser for local charities. This year, we celebrated our 11th anniversary and we opened the Equestrian Center — which is a dream come true for many horse lovers in the area. We have great momentum for continued success as a resort and community team member as we begin 2014.
Rolling Hills kicked off 2013 by showing its support for the arts with a grant of $15,000 to the State Theater for the Arts. “The Theater is a historic treasure and a cultural anchor for Tehama County,” said Kate Grissom, Marketing Director of Rolling Hills Casino.
Local art and music also featured prominently at the annual Corning Rotary Wine, Food and Art Festival held in February. The well-attended event was a major fundraiser for local charities. Over 30 vendors showcased locally produced olive oils, beers, wines, cheeses, walnuts, honey, and candy. Money raised helped fund scholarships, education programs, and community revitalization projects such as the county-wide dictionary project that distributes hardbound dictionaries to every third grade student in Tehama County. The event also benefitted the Youth Basketball program, the School Bookshelf project, and the construction of drinking fountains, bleachers, and the Martini Plaza in Corning.
The June Ribs and Rods was another win win event where attendees had fun and raised money for a good cause at the same time. The car show raised money for local charities and the Ribs cookoff raised money for the HandiRiders.
In September, the fifth annual Par Fore a Cause Pro-Am and the Girls Club: Golf Fore a Cause were both huge successes. The Girl’s Club event introduced seventy-five women to the fundamentals of the game in a “fun-filled” environment while raising needed funds for Girls Inc. The Par Fore a Cause Pro-Am attracted both pros and amateur players who are passionate about playing golf and giving back to the local community. According to Kate Grissom, over $200,000 has been raised for Mercy Foundation North (in support of St. Elizabeth Community Hospital) since that event’s inception.
In November, Rolling Hills Casino hosted the annual Expect More Tehama Educational Summit, an all day event that brought together leaders in business, community, government, and education to discuss opportunities for improving literacy, increasing high school graduation rates, and providing higher education options. “The future of Tehama County depends upon an educated and skilled community,” said John Crosby, Economic Development Director for the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians. “In order to have a strong economy, we must as a community ensure that every child from pre-school to adulthood have the educational resources he or she needs to be successful. Education will continue to be a priority of our Rolling Hills Foundation, and we are proud to fund programs in collaboration with Expect More Tehama.”
The future of Tehama County also depends upon economic development, and so, in April, the Casino hosted the annual Seeds of Opportunity Summit that brought together business and community leaders to plan the next phase of the county-wide branding project.
This year, Rolling Hills continued to sponsor worthwhile events in the community. “We love sponsoring events such as the Rock N Revival Run that brought the community together to support both education and economic growth in the area,” said Grissom.
The Casino also donated thousands of dollars worth of gift certificates for buffets, Timbers dinners, hotel stays, and golf games for local charities to use for raffles, auctions, and other fundraising activities. “Organizations request the donations through the Rolling Hills Community Development Foundation at https://rollinghillscasino.com/community-development/,” said Grissom.
Giving to charity is also a priority among Casino employees. In December, the employee raffle raised $5,093 to benefit local Christmas Adopt a Family Christmas programs, the Corning Christian Assistance organization, Corning Fire Department Alternatives to Violence, Just for Children, and the Tehama County Reading Council.
In addition to helping to promote economic development in the community, the Band of Nomlaki Indians continued to concentrate on expanding the Resort amenities to create more opportunities for fundraising and employment. The newly completed Equestrian Center opened just in time to host events to make the end of 2013 and beginning of 2014 memorable. We’ll talk more about it in a blog later this month.
As we reflect on 2013, we realize how lucky we are to be in Tehama County and to have the fantastic employees and visitors that we have. You helped make 2013 a wonderful year. Together, we can expect even greater things in 2014.
