Organizers of the Tennessee Powerboat Club’s sixth annual Old Hickory Fun Run, Bar Crawl and Raft Up July 27-28 just outside Nashville are expecting their largest fleet and biggest fundraising effort to date for Operation Stand Down Tennessee, a non-profit veteran’s services organization. Last year, the event attracted 152 boats.

Lead organizer Chad Collier said the annual happening has raised more than $250,000 for charities since it started five years ago.

Old Hickory Fun Run, Bar Crawl and Raft Up organizers are hoping for a record turnout that leads to record fundraising for Operation Stand Down Tennessee. 

“Operation Stand-Down Tennessee is on board with us again this year and they are an absolutely wonderful charity,” he said. “They do such amazing work in the veteran community, and they pledge that 86 cents of every dollar goes to their programs for the veterans. And every dollar donated or raised at our auction goes directly to the charity.”

According to its website, “Operation Stand Down Tennessee (OSDTN) is a registered 501(c)(3) that focuses on helping all Veterans and their families by engaging, equipping, and empowering them.” The organization’s services include employment assistance, Veterans Administration benefits assistance, networking, housing and more.

Collier said that he and his all-volunteer staff expect the run to attract an even larger fleet of high-performance catamarans, V-bottom sportboats and center consoles than it did in 2017.

“We are very excited and have set some lofty goals for our event this year,” he said. “We have a title sponsor already in Kia of Murfreesboro and we also have Platinum and Gold sponsorships from some of our other vendors. Since we have a live and silent auction at our event party on Saturday night, we also gladly accept auction items in lieu of cash. So if you have any items that we could auction off such as experiences, boating items or memorabilia, we take those as well and get you the same tax-deductible sponsorship proof as cash.”

Editor’s Note: Speedonthewater.com chief photographer will capture this year’s Old Hickory Fun Run, Bar Crawl and Raft Up.

Related Story: Old Hickory Fun Run In The Books With 152 Entries And 250-Boat Raft-Up