Cassidy’s is thrilled to announce that the 2016 Paul Rushforth Charity Golf Tournament was an incredible success. Tickets had sold out a few weeks before tee-off, with people from all over the Ottawa area in attendance. We were proud to be one of the sponsors of this very worthy cause.
While the final numbers aren’t in yet, the event raised over $35,000 for two Ottawa charities: the Ottawa Senators Foundation and The Orléans-Cumberland Community Resource Centre. This total is about $10,000 more than last year. The Paul Rushforth team did an amazing job organizing the event, and everyone had a fantastic time.
A brief drizzling of rain deterred none of the golfers, and after about 20 minutes it stopped and better weather prevailed for the rest of the day. There were tons of laughs as photos of Paul showed up in a number of hilarious ways around the course.
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We were lucky to be able to send four people to represent Cassidy’s: Scott Myers, Jim Shuiteboer, Marc Priem, and Mark Bellerdine. Our team ended up with a score of +6 (with no cheating!) while the winners achieved a -18 final score. Even though we didn’t win, we still walked away with some happy memories and really awesome gifts.
Special Guests
There was no shortage of local celebrities in attendance. Sens alumnus Shaun Van Allen proved he is as good a golfer as he is at hockey. Ian Mendes of TSN had an excellent swing, and was one of the finalists for the Sobey’s Million Dollar Hole in One Challenge. CTV Morning Live’s Angie Poirier was an excellent MC and modeled jerseys at the auction.
But perhaps the most special guests of all were Jonathan Pitre, otherwise known as the Butterfly Child, and his mom Tina Boileau. Jonathan suffers from Epidermolysis Bullosa, an extremely painful condition that causes his skin to fall off at the slightest touch. Together they are going to Minnesota to go through a blood and bone marrow transplant that will hopefully save his life.
The procedure costs over a million dollars and is not covered by OHIP. It is also very risky for both Jonathan and his mom. A special auction was held to raise funds for this courageous pair, and there was not a dry eye in the house. You can learn more about Jonathan and his condition in this TSN documentary (sensitive viewers please exercise caution, as the video is graphic). You can learn more about EB and make a donation here.
See You Next Year
We’d like to extend our heartfelt thanks to Paul Rushforth and his team for organizing this wonderful and important event. We were delighted to be a part of it, and we’re already making plans to help out again next year.
If you love golfing and great causes, we hope to see you there!
