Connor Smith
WALLACE, N.C. (WECT) – Rob Driver wasn’t going to miss the 15th annual Hope for the Warriors Invitational – even if that meant driving nine hours from Chattanooga, Tennessee.
Driver, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran, has been part of Hope For The Warriors since 2017. The nonprofit – founded by military members aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in 2006 – strives to support military members and their families, and its annual celebrity invitational event at River Landing helps it continue to leave an impact. The invitational has raised nearly $2 million for the military community since 2010.
The invitational is a three-day event, beginning with a celebrity autograph and live entertainment night on Saturday before Sunday’s par three tournament and Monday’s full 18-hole golf day. Roughly 200 golfers are expected to compete on Monday – including a mix of celebrities, military members, businessmen and military supporters.
Driver said many veterans attend the celebrity invitational as a way to reconnect with the people they served with.
“It’s life changing for a lot of us because it gives us a sense of purpose again,” Driver said. “In the military you have your rank, you have your purpose, and with Hope they encourage that camaraderie to get back together. And without them I feel like a lot of times we wouldn’t be able to get back together.”
Driver said there were people he hadn’t seen in months or years before this weekend. But when they connect in Wallace, it’s like they never left each other’s sides.
Zee Zeigler attended the invitational for the first time this weekend. He described it as a “universally fantastic” event.
“I think a lot of the time we don’t understand how much events like this help give back, and Hope for the Warriors is one of the top echelons – I call them tier one operators in the community of giving back for a 501(c). If it wasn’t for these guys we wouldn’t be able to give back to our community and it’s imperative that we show up, have a good time and support it,” Zeigler said.
The weekend is co-hosted by World Series champions Johnny Bench and Doug Flynn. Other celebrities in attendance include former NFL players Jim McMahon and Ken Huff; Bravo castmates Craig Conover and Austen Kroll; singer/songwriters Dillion Dixon and Teresa Wade; HGTV host Kelly Edge and others.
“It’s amazing, you see the different personalities, you get to see them outside of their element,” Driver said. “Some football players, some movie stars, some singers, so when you get out here you realize they’re just normal people who like to have a good time.”
But Driver says come Monday, it’s all about getting on the leaderboard.
“It’s a competition – I want to beat a football player, I want to beat a singer – so when we get out here, it’s good camaraderie, but we all want to win at the end of the day.”
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