In the name of God and guns, TCU and SMU Sigma Alpha Epsilon chapters, with the help of Jim Barnett of Mustangs for Christ, joined together to host the first annual Iron Skillet Shootout at Elm Fork Gun Club in Dallas, raising $14,141 in donations for the Salvation Army.
More than 50 people participated in the clay and skeet shooting sport, and half of those competing represented SMU. Despite the exclusive turnout, the combined chapters raised money from local contributors and the $125 entry fees.
“Jim approached me about the idea,” SMU Chapter Vice President Taylor Kelley said. “He said he was looking for some guys that liked to shoot and hunt.”
The fraternity jumped at the opportunity to raise money for the charity, Kelley added.
Initially at the tournament, the schools divided into smaller teams to compete. As the shootout progressed, the top four shooters from each school competed in the finals, according to Barnett.
TCU student Jake Montgomery took home the Iron Skillet Shootout trophy after he shot 93 out of 100 skeet. Amon Austin shot the most skeet from the SMU team, 90 out of 100.
At the end of the tournament, representatives from both schools presented the donation check to Maj. William Mockabee, area commander of the Salvation Army.
“It was a great time and we raised lots of money for a great cause,” Barnett said.
SAE plans to host the tournament annually and is also looking to open the door to other organizations on campus, Kelley said.
Senate continues relief efforts
The Senate-driven “Three Weeks for Relief” campaign used the battle for the iron skillet as a platform to continue raising relief funds for assisting displaced students who are not attending SMU.
To date, the campaign has raised $24, 763 with three to four thousand of that amount coming from this weekend through the “Bring a Buck” program, which encouraged members of the SMU community to donate one dollar as they entered the stadium.
“We weren’t able to raise as much awareness before the game as we had hoped,” Student Body President Liz Healy said. “But we still raised a lot of money. It went well. “
