Two influential local organizations are partners to host the annual Hot Rod Classic Charity Golf Course and dinner and auction. Proceeds will benefit their separate missions of providing free sports programs for kids and developing Seaside’s downtown.

The two-part event, put on by the Seaside Downtown Development Association and Seaside Kids Inc., is scheduled for Wednesday, Sept. 2.

The golf tournament at Gearhart Golf Links will begin with check-in and team pictures at 11 a.m., followed by a 12:30 p.m. shot-gun start. Prizes will be given for first-, second- and third-place teams; the longest drive; and the high score — also called “most gross,” although it’s all in good fun, said Tita Montero, executive director of the downtown association.

The event’s title sponsor is Ocean Crest Chevrolet Buick GMC Cadillac of Warrenton, which offers a special hole-in-one prize car.

The dinner and auction will be held at the Seaside Civic and Convention Center. Appetizers will be served at 5:30 p.m., when silent auction tables open. Dinner is set for 6 p.m., the live auction for 7 and a raffle drawing for 8:15. Dinner will feature an Italian buffet, including lasagna, garlic bread, Caesar salad and dessert.

The cost is $135 per golfer on each team, which includes a cart, plus access to the dinner, drawings and auction. There is space for about 25 four-member teams, Montero said.

Dinner is also open to non-golfers at a cost of $35 per diner. The downtown association lowered the cost for dinner this year to make attendance financially feasible for more locals, Montero said.

“We really tried to price this so the families of kids that are benefiting could participate,” she said.

Some the items for the live and silent auction include bottles of wine, Seattle Mariners tickets, a vacation package to Bend, tickets to the 2016 Jazz Festival, a day with Seaside Aquarium Manager Keith Chandler, fishing trips, a helicopter ride and others.

A 250-ticket raffle drawing for a $492 golf driver will be held. Dinner attendees will be automatically entered into another drawing for an overnight stay at Chinook Winds Casino Resort, an enterprise of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians.

The Hot Rod Classic Charity Golf Tournament used to be held in conjunction with SDDA’s Hot Rod Happenings car show. The two events split in 2005 because of the amount of preparation they each required, Montero said. The annual car show was renamed Wheels and Waves, and it will be held Sept. 11-13 this year.

Last year, the association moved the charity golf tournament — which retained its name — to the Wednesday between the annual Hood to Coast Relays in late August and Labor Day. The organization also partnered with Seaside Kids Inc. for the first time. The event used to be put on in conjunction with Providence Seaside Hospital.

Proceeds from the event will be split between the two organizations. The event is SDDA’s most significant fundraiser, whereas other events focus more on bringing people to town, Montero said. In addition to downtown beautification, funds raised through the golf tournament and accompanying dinner and auction go to subsidize costs for other events and endeavors, such as the organization’s car shows, wine walks, holiday coupon book and walking map.

Moving the event to Wednesday helped make it a “very much local” event, Montero said, adding SDDA, like other nonprofits, depends on locals for sponsorship and support.

“Nothing would happen without the support of our local residents,” she said.

Seaside Kids Inc. was started in 1956 by the successful Seaside Post 99 Connie Mack team, hosts and winners of the state tournament. The team then was flow to San Bernardino, Calif., to compete in the title game of the Pacific Coast World Series. By defeating teams from Burien, Wash., and Stockton, Calif., the Seaside team claimed the title.

With funds raised for their California trip, the team members established the nonprofit Seaside Kids Inc., and adopted a permanent adage, said Jim Auld, a Seaside Kids board member. “‘No kid would ever have to pay to play,’ and that’s true today,” he said.

The organization promotes free sports programs for boys and girls in Clatsop County, primarily from the Seaside, Gearhart and Cannon Beach communities. The organization annually serves about 600 kids, from kindergartners to high schools senior, through its programs, which include baseball, softball, football, golf and free swim days.

The organization uses Broadway Field, Norway Field and Wahanna Field. All the necessary expenses — facilities, equipment, uniforms and umpires — are covered by Seaside Kids through sponsorships, member dues and fundraising. The Seaside Kids’ motto is, “Active youth today, active leaders tomorrow.”

“We’re real proud of this organization,” said Auld, who was 12 when the Connie Mack team won the championship in 1956. He has remained a part of the program “because I was a Seaside Kid.”

Over the years, Auld said, Seaside Kids has thrived because “this community never said no.”

The organization’s partnership with SDDA for last year’s event was successful in terms of participation and support, and Auld hopes the same for this year.

“We’d love to have people there,” he said.

For more information or to register, call (503) 717-1914 or email director@seasidedowntown.com. To find out more about Seaside Kids, visit www.seasidekidsinc.org/.