FALMOUTH – There’s still room to golf for a good cause in the 4th Annual Casella Golf Classic, a Jimmy Fund Golf tournament that will raise money for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute on Sunday, August 17 and Monday, August 18.

More than 200 golfers are expected to participate in the event, which aims to raise more than $30,000 for cancer care and research.

Now spearheaded by Casella Waste Services Inc., and president Mike Casella, of Scarborough, the Casella Golf Classic has a rich history. One of the Jimmy Fund’s original golf tournaments, it was founded in 1975 as the Robert K. Goodman Memorial Tournament, in honor of a teenager who lost his life to leukemia. The tournament has been part of the Casella Waste Systems Inc. culture since 2003. The 2008 Casella Golf Classic aims to raise $30,000, bringing its five-year total contribution to more than $140,000, and the event’s total to more than $1 million since its inception.

Gorham resident Pam Fontaine has co-chaired the tournament with Mike Casella for the past three years.

“Each year I am amazed by the generosity of the patrons,” she said. “We are one of the few tournaments in Maine that benefits the Jimmy Fund, and we understand how important the research funding is to Dana-Farber, which helps people around the world.”

Registration for the Casella Golf Classic is $1500 per foursome, which includes eight tickets to the kick-off reception on Sunday, August 17, and a round of golf, lunch, and a catered dinner on Monday, August 18. Non-golfers can attend Sunday night’s event for $50. For just the day of golf, players can take the green for $250 per person.

The kick-off reception will be held at the Marriott Stable Oaks in South Portland, with a raw bar and cuisine from area restaurants. A live and silent auction will offer patrons the opportunity to bid on items such as a Rolex watch, a Nascar tour, Rossignol winter ski jackets, a high-definition television, a lap top computer, golf equipment, and gift certificates to area restaurants. Maine native and local comedian Bob Marley will provide the evening’s entertainment. The next day, golfers will tee-off at the Woodlands Club in Falmouth with two shotgun start options at 7 a.m. and 12:30 p.m.

Spots are still available. To learn how to register or become a sponsor, call Pam Fontaine at 883-4600 or Debbie Nicolas, 883-4600 or Debbie.Nicholas@Casella.com.

Jimmy Fund Golf is the largest, first, and longest running organized golf program for charity in the nation, with more than 160 annual volunteer-run tournaments held around the country. In 2007, Jimmy Fund Golf tournaments collectively raised $6.7 million for groundbreaking research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.