H-E-B Tournament of Champions History

The H-E-B Tournament of Champions was established in 1986 when Decker Food Company asked H-E-B Grocery Co. to invite a few of their market vendors to play in a golf tournament and donate the proceeds to Special Olympics Texas. The President of Decker Foods was the Chairman of the Board for Special Olympics Texas at that time. The event raised $38,500 and the proceeds made it possible to hire a Special Olympics Texas Games Coordinator for Area 20 which included San Antonio. Chuck Hendryx (H- E-B V.P.) and Kathy Ashwin (Admin Asst.) organized the event in six weeks and concluded, if they had a year to plan the event, more money would be raised. The following year the event raised $78,000 and the rest is history!

Over the past 38 years, this event has raised over $160 million dollars benefiting Special Olympics Texas and other worthwhile organizations that focus on children and educational initiatives throughout the State of Texas.

In 2003, the H-E-B Tournament of Champions Charitable Trust was established and the event became a 501(c)3 tax exempt private foundation under the Internal Revenue.