VERO BEACH — Vero Beach native and world No. 8 Mardy Fish was honored recently in Indian Wells with the ATP ACES For Charity award. The $10,000 award will support the Mardy Fish Foundation mission to provide children access to after school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment.
The purpose is to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives so they can achieve their dreams, through its annual fundraiser Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest to Benefit the Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation.
To date, more than 2,000 students at 13 elementary schools participate in the Mardy Fish Foundation Achievable Dreams After School and Club Programs, and more than 1,000 children participate in Mardy’s Kids on Court.
The Jake Owen Foundation also continues to assist youth who are battling childhood diseases through St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures, and means of prevention, for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment.
The sixth annual Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest was held in Vero Beach on Dec. 9-10, 2011. Official Host Sponsor Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club hosted the Kids’ Tennis Clinic, Reception and Tennis Exhibition.
The Jake Owen Concert had to be rescheduled and was held Saturday, April 7, at the Citrus Bowl/Billy Livings Field at Vero Beach High School.
The Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation are pleased to announce that despite weather challenges, with the support of the sponsors and the Indian River County community, each activity of the event was sold out.
Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest raised more than $145,000 through sponsorships and revenue from the Tennis Exhibition and Reception held on Dec. 9.
Although inclement weather and public safety concerns forced the rescheduling of the Concert, the 2011 Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest is the most successful event in the history of the annual fundraiser for the Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation.
The ATP ACES For Charity program, launched in 2011, is a global initiative aimed at giving back to communities where ATP World Tour events are played, as well as recognizing and supporting tournament and player charitable initiatives.
This year’s 14 recipients support a range of causes, encompassing youth enrichment programs in Africa and Chennai, earthquake relief in New Zealand, healthcare in St. Petersburg and Sydney, HIV/AIDS education in Washington D.C., and social services for children in Colombia, Zagreb, and Austin, Texas.
“I am deeply honored to accept the ATP ACES For Charity award on behalf of the Mardy Fish Foundation,” said Fish. “I want to thank the ATP for its generosity. This award will allow Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest to continue to grow and increase its contributions to both the Mardy Fish Foundation and Jake Owen Foundation.”
About Mardy Fish
Vero Beach native Mardy Fish is currently ranked No. 8 on the ATP World Tour. Fish had a career-best season in 2011, winning the U.S. Open Series in August, competing in the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals for the first time in his career, and reaching the highest ranking of his career at No. 7 in the world.
Fish won the Atlanta Tennis Championships for the second consecutive year, and reached the finals in Los Angeles and Montreal. He also reached the semifinals in Key Biscayne, third round at the French Open, quarterfinals at Wimbledon, and fourth round at the U.S. Open.
Over the course of his career he has won six singles titles and eight doubles titles while defeating players such as Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, Andy Murray and in doubles, Novak Djokovic.
Fish was a Silver Medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. In addition to representing his country at the Olympics, Fish has been an important member of the U.S. Davis Cup team during the past decade.
In February, 2012, Fish contributed to the U.S. team’s Davis Cup victory over Switzerland with victories in singles and doubles.
For more information on Mardy Fish, visit www.MardyTennis.com and follow him on Twitter @MardyFish.
About Jake Owen
Jake Owen, also a Vero Beach native, is a Grammy, CMA, ACM and CMT award-nominated artist who was named the 2009 Top New Male Vocalist by the Academy of Country Music.
Following the success of his debut album “Startin’ with Me,” Owen’s 2009 release “Easy Does It” debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart.
“Barefoot Blue Jean Night” is the next chapter in Owen’s successful recording career. The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard chart, and the first single “Barefoot Blue Jean Night” became the first RIAA Platinum-certified hit of Owen’s career, with over 1M copies sold.
His current single, “Alone With You,” is ranked No. 3 on Billboard’s Country charts. In addition to headlining his own shows, Owen has toured with some of the biggest names in country music, including Brooks & Dunn, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Sugarland, Carrie Underwood, and Keith Urban.
Owen has also recently appeared on NBC’s “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” and E!’s “Chelsea Lately.”
For information and tour dates, see www.JakeOwen.net and follow him on Twitter @JakeOwen.
About the Mardy Fish Foundation
The Mardy Fish Foundation mission is to provide children access to after school exercise, nutritional and enrichment programs in a safe environment to prepare them for healthy, productive and successful lives so they can achieve their dreams.
Since its establishment in 2006, the Mardy Fish Foundation has opened after school programs in 13 elementary schools benefiting more than 2,000 students in Indian River County.
The programs provide a place for children to go and partake in various activities that will help them better themselves using sports, music, art, and dance.
In 2009, the Foundation initiated another city-wide program, “Mardy’s Kids on Courts,” that allows local youth to improve their tennis skills through instruction and competition while instilling the many life lessons tennis has to offer.
For more information on the Mardy Fish Foundation, visit www.MardyFishFoundation.org.
About the Jake Owen Foundation
Founded in 2010, the Jake Owen Foundation was created to offer its support on a national level to children battling cancer and other childhood diseases while also lending its support to the Mardy Fish Foundation and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, TN, who are benefiting from the extensive research and patient-care the hospital provides.
Once a patient is accepted, St. Jude covers all the medical costs. Beyond that, Owen’s mission is to assist youth in his hometown area of Indian River County.
Through Jake’s association within the country music community, he has had the opportunity to visit children and families at St. Jude covered by insurance. Families without insurance are never asked to pay.
St. Jude also provides transportation, lodging, and meals for one parent and child.
For more information, visit www.JakeOwen.net/charity.
About the Event Sponsors
Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest continues to gain the support of many companies and individuals, including The McLaughlin Family as the Reception Sponsor.
The Event Host Sponsor is Grand Harbor Golf & Beach Club. The Concert Venue Sponsor is Vero Beach Sports Village.
Official Sponsors are Clear Channel “WAVE 92.7″and “Oldies 103.7,” K-Swiss, Pelican Outdoor, Proctor Construction, SpringHill Suites by Marriott, and Vero Beach Magazine.
About C & H Events, Inc.
C & H Events, Inc. is a full-service event management and marketing company based in Boca Raton, Fla., offering more than 50 years combined experience in event management and marketing, meeting planning, corporate promotions, sports marketing, public relations and corporate hospitality.
Among the tennis events C & H Events manages in addition to Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest is Swingtime, A Pro-Celebrity Pro-Am Tennis & Golf Tournament.
Please visit www.CHEvents.com for further details about C & H Events.
Event Information
For further information about Mardy’s Tennis & Jake’s Music Fest, call C & H Events, Inc. at (561) 394-9190 or visit www.CHEvents.com.