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By BARTON PERKINS | Staff Writer

COLUMBIANA – The third annual “Caleb’s Charity Cornhole Classic” arrives in Columbiana on Saturday, Aug. 26.

The “Caleb’s Charity Cornhole Classic” will take place at the 4-H Center in Columbiana. Registration begins at 8 a.m., and the first toss starts at 10 a.m. The tournament will adhere to the rules seen in televised cornhole tournaments, and a BBQ lunch will be available to all interested parties. The “Caleb’s Charity Cornhole Classic” will conclude at 3 p.m. All funds raised will be donated to NAMI’s Shelby County chapter.

The event’s namesake Caleb Micheal Ponder was a Pelham native who died by suicide in 2018. “Caleb’s Charity Cornhole Classic” was created by his family several years after Ponder’s passing, and the event helps raise money for NAMI, the National Alliance for Mental Illness.

“After our grandson took his life, we were talking with an officer from the Pelham Police Department, and he directed us to NAMI,” said Ponder’s grandfather Leon Johnston. 

NAMI is a national organization dedicated to supporting families experiencing the effects of mental illnesses. This often manifests in generating greater community awareness and involvement in mental health programs.

“We found an organization that helped us in our grief, and we realized we thought we ought to be more involved,” Johnston said. “Then, during a chapter meeting, the possibility of a cornhole tournament  fundraiser possibly being an avenue to raise funds for promoting NAMI funding came up.”

Ponder’s death was still on his family’s minds, so they decided to personalize the tournament by naming it in his honor. 

“Using his name helps to identify the family basis of mental illness,” Johnston said.

For more information, please visit:

Namishelby.org/come-out-and-sling-some-bags-at-nami-shelbys-3rd-annual-calebs-cornhole-charity-classic/