A group dedicated to educating Douglas County workers and residents about the need for more ethical behavior is hosting its first golf tournament to pair young golfers with adults and offer some friendly competition among local churches.

The student/adult tournament, hosted by the Community Character Coalition of Douglas County, is scheduled for Oct. 10 at West Pines Golf Course in Douglasville with a 9:30 a.m. shotgun start. Breakfast will be served at 8 a.m.

Local sponsors have stepped up for each high school to send a team to the tournament, said coalition chair Ann Jones Guider.

“This is our inaugural tournament and we hope to make it an annual event,” said Guider, a member of the Douglas County Commission.

She has issued a challenge to all churches in the area to bring a team to the event.

“Let this be a faith-based event,” Guider said. “It is great for us to all pull together for this family event. Who better can teach character than the church?”

The Community Character Coalition of Douglas County was founded by former state representative Bob Snelling in 1999 and has hosted annual breakfasts each year.

The Coalition’s mission is “to serve families, schools, employee groups and churches by bringing character development programs to the Douglas County community through liaison with the leadership of the Coalition.”

According to the group’s website, “The Character Coalition exists to advocate teaching and demonstrating positive moral character in all arenas, businesses, schools, families, and others. We are able to put any interested party in touch with resources to accomplish that purpose.”

Since 2001, the organization has awarded exceptional character scholarships to local students. It gives $3,500 annually.

Some of its other programs have included producing forums on gangs and bullying and the dangers of social networking in 2011; offering character education classes for every employee of the Douglas County Sheriff’s Department in 2007; and producing calendars for the school system and businesses in 2002.

Julian Carter Jr., a longtime banker in Douglas County and now CEO for the Douglas County College and Career Institute, is a Coalition board member and chairman of the Oct. 10 golf tournament.

The event is being held during the week of Douglas County Schools’ fall break so students can participate in the event.

The tournament team fee of $500 includes two mulligans and entry into all hole contests. Each team must include at least one student between the ages of 14 to 18, Guider said.

She said money raised from the event will go toward three scholarships awarded each year to students who emulate good character during their school years.