The day dawned with blue skies and green fairways for the recent 31st annual Golf-A-Thon to benefit the VNA & Hospice Foundation at Bent Pine Golf Club, during which golf pros from 13 local clubs played 135 holes of golf in a single day.
Unlike past years, which saw supporters from the various clubs cheering on their pros and numerous VNA volunteers helping out, because of COVID safety precautions players spent the day showcasing their skills, one stroke after another, aided by only a handful of VNA volunteers.
To compensate, the tournament was live-streamed, so that everyone was able to watch as the high level of competitive golf unfolded.
Although the majority of volunteers couldn’t be on hand during the tournament, a team of 27 Club Captains had previously gotten the word out to friends and neighbors within their communities via mailings, handwritten notes, calls and follow-ups.
Their efforts clearly paid off. Despite the difficulties caused by the pandemic, Michelle Deschane, VNA & Hospice Foundation operations manager, announced that the event raised more than $450,000 – a record-breaking year for the nonprofit.
For more than three decades, Vero Beach golf professionals have teed up to help raise funds to support the foundation’s efforts to provide home health and hospice services to underinsured or uninsured Indian River County residents.
The inaugural Golf-A-Thon was hosted at Orchid Island Golf Club in 1990, with four pros playing 100 holes and raising $20,000. Of those original players, Pat Gorman, director of golf at Bent Pine, is the only one remaining.
This year Gorman hosted fellow pros: Don Meadows, Quail Valley Golf Club; Steve Hudson, John’s Island Golf Club; Ryan Zug, Pointe West Country Club; Matthew Challenor, Windsor Golf Club; Drew DiSesa, Riomar Country Club; Randy Hedgecock, Vero Beach Country Club; Ian Killen, Indian River Club; Jimmy Gascoigne, Grand Harbor Golf Club; Bela Nagy, Sandridge Golf Club; Bob Gruber, Hawk’s Nest at the Moorings; Frank Mentzer, Oak Harbor Golf Club; and David Champagne, Orchid Island Golf Club.
Don Meadows took first place in the post-game Shootout, with Pat Gorman taking second place. The Closest to the Pin winners were David Champagne, Steve Hudson, Don Meadows and Bela Nagy.
“We thank the clubs for allowing the pros to support us, and we thank the club memberships that support their pros,” said Deschane. “These charitable dollars are important. This allows us to continue our mission of not turning anybody away. Everybody deserves high-quality, innovative care.”
“This is an amazing event,” said Lundy Fields, VNA president/CEO. “Club supporters are supporting their pro, which supports the VNA, which then supports the people that we support – the folks that really can’t afford healthcare and don’t have great access to healthcare. It’s a cascade of love and support through the pros to the VNA and the VNA’s love and support into the community.”
Commenting on this year’s impressive contributions, Fields said, “I think people have really connected more with knowing that people are hurting. COVID has leveled the playing field in certain ways. In a way, it brought people together because we were all experiencing the same fears and the same potential issues.”
The VNA & Hospice Foundation was founded more than 40 years ago to help improve the quality of life of patients in need, regardless of their financial resources. Programs include bereavement support, the children’s bereavement retreat Camp Chrysalis, Hospice House, COVID vaccines for the homebound, music therapy, remote patient monitoring, community health and a mobile health clinic.
For more information, visit vnatc.com.
Photos by Brenda Ahearn
