It’s been a spectacular ten years for Golf Fore the Girls. The annual fundraiser for breast health was started in 2006 as part of Golf for the Cure by Jody Cecile, Sandy Raven, Rose Evans, and Martha Lapp. After a one-year hiatus in 2010 because Deerhurst’s Lakeside Golf Course wasn’t available during the G8 Summit, the committee decided to keep all of the funds raised in our community and the Huntsville Hospital Foundation became the event’s beneficiary. It has always sold out, necessitating the creation of the spill-over event Bling Your Bra at Diamond in the Ruff, and since 2011 the two have raised more than $200,000 for the Foundation.
“The success of the tournament is because we have given our golfers a really good time and a really good bang for their buck,” says out-going committee member Sandy Raven. “Plus the fact that they are feeling good that their money is going to the hospital foundation in this time of need.”
The tournament includes a variety of on-the-course activities. “We want them to go out and be excited and surprised when they get to a hole,” says Raven. “This year we had, for instance, fruit kebabs on number one, a hole-in-one contest on number six sponsored by Huntsville Travel – they’ve been with us right along – on number nine we gave away gelato from That Little Place by the Lights, on number 10 Spencer’s Tall Trees served butter tarts and homemade lemonade, and on 17 Shoppers was there giving away all kinds of samples.”
Prizes go to the team with the low gross score, closest to the pin and longest drive winners, and the winners of the costume contest. And every golfer gets a gift – this year it was a glittery flask embossed with TGIF – Thank God I’m Fabulous, was provided by the gift sponsor, Dr. Drew Markham Dentistry.
The event usually includes a morning of golf followed by a luncheon. This year, in honour of the event’s 10th anniversary, the committee pulled out all the stops with an afternoon tournament, dinner, and dance.
One of the highlights of the Golf Fore the Girls series has been the costumes, says Raven. “They’ve gone crazy. From the very first tournament maybe a couple of girls wore a pink t-shirt or maybe someone had on a pink wig, but it just grew and grew and now it’s just incredible. The work people go to is just fabulous.”
She’s also been pleased with the support from the community. “From the beginning we’ve had really good sponsors. A lot of them have been consistently with us. Wendy McConnell at Brokerlink, for example, has been our platinum sponsor for the past three years and has signed on for another three.” Other major sponsors this year included Dr. Drew Markham Dentistry, Muskoka MediSpa and Vein Centre, Shoppers Drug Mart, along with multiple partners, hole sponsors, and silent auction donors.
Over the years, the committee members have come and gone — Karin Terziano, Linda Martin, Lynne Newell, Tami Mattice and Annette Donald all played a hand in its success through the years. And going forward, with Raven and Evans – the only two committee members who have been involved for all 10 years – retiring from the committee, it will be in the good hands of another group of local women. Janet Markham, Ramona Sullivan, Marian Shaw and Johanne Rae Stewart will be taking the reins for 2017.
“I think the future is bright for Golf Fore the Girls,” says Markham. “I don’t anticipate much in the way of changing it. It works as noted by the waitlist we have every year. What makes it work is the support from the community – the loyal sponsorship year after year and the commitment out of the participants. All we have to do is ask and the ladies show up.”
In addition to its major sponsors, the tournament is also supported by these partners: Assante Wealth Management, Bickley Ford, Deerhurst Resort, Festing Toyota, Jason Armstrong’s Huntsville Honda, Hyundai and Dodge, Kimberly-Clark, Lang & Watson Lawyers, MBRP Performance Exhaust, McIlroy Insurance Brokers, On The Docks Pub, Cheryl Malone of RBC Commercial Banking, Sue Burke at Royal LePage, and The Learning Carpet.
For more information on Golf Fore the Girls, visit their Facebook page here.
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