The Howell Chamber of Commerce will host a Breakfast Bonanza networking event 8:30-9:30 a.m. Sept. 17 at Chick-fil- A, 4881 Route 9 north, Howell. Maureen Brown from PNC Bank will speak at the meeting. Admission is free to chamber members, $5 for prospective members. Refreshments can by purchased. Details: 732- 363-4114; www.howellchamber.com.

The Howell Chamber of Commerce will host its annual Chamber Porch networking event outside on the chamber’s porch at 102 West Second St. (corner of West Second Street and Route 9 south), Howell. Light refreshments will be served. Bring plenty of business cards. The cost is $7 per person or two for $10 for chamber members, with prospective members welcome for an additional $5 each. Details: 732-363-4114; www.howellchamber.com.

David Richards, of Howell, general manager of the Olive Garden in Eatontown, has been presented with Darden Restaurants’ top honor — the Diamond Club Award. The award, now in its 13th year, is presented annually to general managers throughout North America who “demonstrate outstanding results by delighting guests with a genuine Italian dining experience and achieving top financial performance in the company’s previous fiscal year.” This year, Richards joins a group of 37 general managers selected from more than 700 Olive Garden restaurants in North America.

The inaugural Howell Chamber of Commerce/Howell PAL golf outing will be held Sept. 13 at Battleground Country Club, Manalapan, starting at 12:30 p.m. The cost to participate is $195 per person or $780 per foursome. Prizes include a foursome donated by Battleground Country Club and a foursome at Eagle Oaks Country Club donated by Bob Walsh. For more information about registration or sponsorship opportunities to advertise a business, contact the chamber at 732-363-4114.

Kessler Rehabilitation Center’s outpatient division (with offices in Freehold) will host the 2010 Kessler and Friends Military Golf Benefit onAug. 23 at Eagle Oaks Golf and Country Club in Farmingdale. All of the proceeds from this event will go to fund programs for members of the armed services and their families. Among the special guests scheduled to play is former New York Jets defensive lineman Joe Klecko. The tournament will feature “Operation Armed Foursome,” a sponsored day of golf that enables an active military member to be included in every foursome. Those who purchase a foursome, but register only three players will enable a soldier, sailor, airman, Marine or Coast Guard member to join their group. Details: Emily, 732-996-0232.

Howell Chamber of Commerce will host a Breakfast Bonanza networking event 8:30-9:30 a.m. Sept. 3 at Chick-fil-A, 4881 Route 9 north, Howell. A representative from Kumon Learning of Howell will present information about employee quality at the meeting. Admission is free to chamber members, $5 for prospective members. Refreshments can by purchased. Details: 732- 363-4114.

Kathi Novak, R.N., of Howell, was the recipient of a Circle of Excellence Award from the St. Barnabas Hospice and Palliative Care Center, an affiliate of the St. Barnabas Health Care System, honoring service excellence in the delivery of hospice and palliative care. Novak, who has been with the SBHPCC for eight years, works on the SBHPCC inpatient hospice and palliative care unit at Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch, also an affiliate of the St. Barnabas Health Care System, where patients are being treated for acute symptoms that cannot be managed in another setting.

The OceanFirst Foundation, in collaboration with the Lakewood BlueClaws, WOBM-FM and WOBM-AM, has announced the return of the “Home Runs for Heroes” program.

The program, which successfully debuted in 2009, resulted in a donation of $24,000 to local charities that provide essential support to veterans and active duty members of the United States military.

Nine charities are each matched up with one of nine BlueClaws player positions. Every time the BlueClaws hit a home run during a home game, the charity corresponding to the home run hitter will receive a $1,000 donation from OceanFirst Foundation.