The Cheyney University C Club, Inc. is pleased to announce that it will honor William Ellerbee ’70 at the 9th annual Wade Wilson Golf Tournament & Silent Auction on August 19, 2019, at the Penn Oaks Country Club in West Chester, Pennsylvania.
“The C Club is pleased to have the opportunity to partner with Bill Ellerbee as we strive to raise $30,000 in scholarship support for Cheyney student-athletes this year,” said C Club President Yasheaka Oakley Owens. “As an alumnus and a member of The Cheyney C Club, he has consistently shown that he embodies our mission to fortify the future of athletics and we’re happy he’s a part of the team.”
Ellerbee, a long-time member of The Cheyney C Club, is a 1970 graduate of Cheyney State College (now Cheyney University of Pennsylvania) and is most well-known for his career as a recreational and high school basketball coach in Philadelphia between 1970 and 2002. A 2013 inductee into the Cheyney University Athletic Hall of Fame, Ellerbee is recognized as one of the greatest high school basketball coaches in Philadelphia.
“Everyone isn’t able to participate in sports and athletics because of numerous barriers,” said Ellerbee. “As a former athlete and coach, I believe that athletics build character and can help frame the way that you think and work, so it is important to me that Cheyney student-athletes are getting support from various sources and are able to overcome these challenges.”
“I’m happy to reach back and help those who need assistance moving forward,” said Ellerbee.
Ellerbee will be honored during the Tournament Awards Banquet as Honorary Chair of the 2019 Wade Wilson Golf Tournament at 2 PM on August 19. Tickets for the awards banquet are $45.00 per person and include the beer & wine cocktail hour as well as access to the silent auction.
All proceeds from the 2019 Wade Wilson Golf Tournament and Silent Auction will benefit student-athletes in need of scholarship support at Cheyney University of Pennsylvania.
If you are interested in becoming a charity golf tournament sponsor, placing an advertisement in honor of Bill Ellerbee in the souvenir ad booklet, or registering to attend the Wade Wilson Golf Tournament & Silent Auction on Monday, August 19, please contact C Club President Yasheaka Oakley Owens ’11 by calling (267) 980-5012 or emailing cclubcu@gmail.com.
If you would like to mail your tax-deductible donation via check or money order, please make it payable to “The Cheyney C Club” and write “In Honor of William Ellerbee” on the memo line. All payments can be mailed to: The Cheyney C Club, c/o Wade Wilson Golf, P.O. Box 4966, Philadelphia, PA 19119-0066.
The Cheyney University C Club, Inc. is a federally recognized 501 (c)(3) organization, deductions to which are tax deductible according to the law.
William Ellerbee is a 1970 graduate of Cheyney State College (now Cheyney University of Pennsylvania) and a decorated Vietnam War veteran having served as a Marine between 1964 and 1968.
Ellerbee started his professional career in the School District of Philadelphia as a math teacher at Simon Gratz in 1970. Ellerbee also worked as an assistant recreation leader in the city’s Department of Recreation for 31 years. He was the co-founder and deputy director of Total Response, Inc., a non-profit organization that provided youth motivational programs through athletics.
Ellerbee built an outstanding reputation as one of the city’s most prolific coaches. He spent 20 years (1982 to 2002) as head coach at Simon Gratz High School. During those years, he compiled a terrific overall record of 452-100. He guided the Gratz Bulldogs to 20 straight playoff appearances. Ellerbee also coached in 12 championship games while capturing six Public League titles.
There aren’t many coaches like him. He brought Simon Gratz a tremendous amount of publicity through his coaching exploits. Under Ellerbee’ s tutelage, Simon Gratz had a 107-game regular season winning streak in the Public League and a 134-game overall winning streak, including playoffs. In addition, he was named the Public League Coach of the Year in 1991, the State of Pennsylvania Coach of the Year in 1993 and 1997, and National Coach of the Year by ESPN and USA Today in 1993. He is a three-time Hall of Famer, including the Rotary Club of Latrobe, Pa., the Myrtle Beach, South Carolina Beach Ball Classic and Five-Star Camps International.
In 2002, Ellerbee became an assistant coach to Coach John Chaney with Temple University men’s basketball program and has since retired. Bill Ellerbee is a Class of 2013 inductee into the Cheyney University Athletic Hall of Fame. He was also an honoree at the 2018 Basketball Legends Dinner. Ellerbee and his wife Carole have been married 35 years and they have two adult children.