The Putt People First miniature golf course will end its open season with a seasonal celebration Saturday at its Puttspookpalooza event.
The golf course, run by collaborating agencies Havar Inc and Athens Area Mediation Services, closes every year with a free event as a thank-you to its local supporters. This will be the first year the event embraces a Halloween theme with special decorations and a costume contest.
The golf course, located at The Ridges, was originally built for patients in the former Athens Lunatic Asylum. After the mental health center closed its doors, the course fell into disrepair until Athens Area Mediation Services and Havar Incorporated took over the space, renovating it and turning it into a city park.
According to its website, Havar is a local non-profit organization which advocates for and builds connections with children and adults with disabilities. The golf course, through Havar’s work with Athens Area Mediation Services, provides hourly employment for adults with disabilities, paying them $10 per hour.
“Most of our funding comes from community sponsors whereas we obviously get some revenue from people who pay to golf,” Scott Dennis, who manages the course’s daily operations, said. “A great deal of the revenue does go to pay the wages of people with disabilities who work there.”
Dennis said the year-end celebration is not a big fundraising event, but is more of a thank you to the businesses that sponsor the course and golfers who play throughout the summer.
“If you’ve never experienced Athens miniature golf … it’s a great time to experience it because of the free food from local businesses as well as prizes, and at no cost,” he said. “It’ll be a good lead-up to the Halloween festivities.”
Shelby Rhodes, executive director of Havar, was the mind behind the switch to a Halloween theme for the event this year.
“I know that Athens is a big Halloween town and they take Halloween very seriously, so it seemed like a good fit to make the closing event Halloween-themed,” he said.
Rhodes said the closing event has always been free to the public, and he hopes affordability will draw families to the course for the afternoon. In addition to free golf, he said local businesses like O’Betty’s Red Hot and Donkey Coffee and Espresso will donate food and drinks to feed golfers at no charge.
“It’s something that you can take your kids to and not have to really worry,” he said. “It’s a free, family-friendly activity that’s just going to be a lot of fun for everybody.”
