Arjun Atwal to donate and raise awareness for the Oak Creek Sikh Temple shooting victims at Wyndham Championship

August 16, 2012

GREENSBORO,NC– PGA TOUR champion, Arjun Atwal, returns to the site of his 2010 Wyndham Championship victory with a heavy heart. Atwal, a native of India and Sikh, was shocked by the recent massacre at the Oak Creek Sikh Temple near Milwaukee, Wisconsin on August 5th. A gunman killed six members of the congregation and injured two others, including a police officer who was shot multiple times and still remains hospitalized.

“My family and I knew we had to do something to help the victims of this horrible tragedy right after we heard about it” said Atwal. “I know that we can’t bring any of the victims back, but we wanted to help out as much as we can to honor and bring awareness to those involved.”

Arjun and his family decided they wanted to help by making a donation directly to the victims of the tragedy and also raise awareness of the peace loving Sikh people. Atwal held a press conference at The Wyndham Championship on Tuesday to announce his donation and ask for support of other PGA TOUR players and fans in honoring those killed in this horrible case of domestic terrorism. The PGA TOUR and Atwal will provide “Saffron” Ribbons, which represent the color of the Sikh’s, for fellow players and caddies to wear during this week’s tournament in remembrance of those killed and injured.

The Sikh Temple of Wisconsin has set up a fund for the shooting victims that can be accessed by the public through a website. The site was set up by the family of Temple President Satwant Singh Kaleka, who was shot and killed while heroically attempting to take down the shooter. None of the donations received, however, will benefit the Kaleka family. Instead, 100% of all contributions will go directly to lower-income families who lost loved ones, those injured in the shooting, and to repairing the temple.  All donations received are tax deductible and will be routed directly through the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit (Tax ID # 39-1928829).

To donate to the victims go to: http://www.neverendinglight.com/index.php/we-are-sikhs.

For more on Sikhs in America go to: http://www.worldsikhcouncil.org/ and http://sikhcouncilusa.org both who support the fund for victims.