Golf Benefit Raises Over $60,000

From left to right, Friends of St. Anthony’s Vice Chairperson Dick Hawickhorst, Friends Chairperson Jim Hecht, and St. Anthony’s Executive Director of Fund Development Michael Wall, stand by the entrance to the Effingham Country Club, the site of the Friends of St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital’s 4th Annual Golf Benefit.

The Friends of St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital’s Fourth Annual Golf Benefit, held July 20 at the Effingham Country Club, was a big success. The event, which evolved through a partnership with Jonathan Kabbes and “Golf for a Cure” held in 2009 and 2010, raised over $60,000 towards the Friends Hope & Healing Campaign to benefit the Center for Advanced Imaging.

With the help of many giving members of the community and dedicated hospital staff, the Friends have raised approximately $2.8 million towards the project that provided the most advanced diagnostic technology in the region to help diagnose cancer, breast cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimer’s at earlier stages, without having to travel out of town.

The event was blessed with ideal weather conditions for the 128 golfers, over 50 volunteers, and many other community members. The day included many exciting activities, entertainment and outstanding golf. Prior to a shotgun start at 12:45 p.m., golfers were treated to an entertaining exhibition by Craig Hocknull, a Trick Short Artist, and his “Outback Golf Show” sponsored by Jacobson & Associates – Healthcare Consulting. The golf event also included a variety of activities on the course, such as “Beat the Pro,” Niemerg’s Steakhouse Challenge, longest putt, longest drive, closest to the pin, and the opportunity to master two of Craig’s trick shots.

The winning team of the Golf Benefit was the J & J Ventures team of James Jansen, Kit Koerner, Michael Koerner, and Michael McHugh. The second place team was Robert Huey, Ryan Brown, Michael Davin and Jonathan Kabbes.

Other contest winners were:

Closest to the Pin (Men) – Dennis Sandschafer

Closest to the Pin (Ladies) – Katy Saathoff

Longest Drive (Men) – Michael Koester

Longest Drive (Ladies) – Katy Saathoff

Longest Putt – Dallas Kingery

Putting Contest – Michael Koester

New this year was a raffle with various prizes that were won by the following people:

French Lick Resort Package (donated by French Lick Resort) – Brian Swingler

Dell Laptop Computer (donated by Dell) – Dana Chasteen

St. Louis Rams vs. Arizona Cardinal Football Tickets (donated by Grunloh Construction Inc.) – Denny Ricketts

St. Louis Cardinals vs. Arizona Diamondbacks Baseball Tickets (donated by Jonathan Kabbes) – Debbie Stephens

Effingham Performance Center (EPC) Tickets (donated by St. Anthony’s Memorial Hospital and EPC) – Rick Chambers

Jim Hecht, Friends of St. Anthony’s Chairperson, expressed his thanks on behalf of the Friends.

“We are so grateful for our sponsors and community members who supported this event, beginning four years ago when Jonathan Kabbes started this event to help fight cancer in his community. Through their overwhelming community support by donating their money and time for this event, we can bring more hope and healing to our community.”

Michael Wall, St. Anthony’s Executive Director of Fund Development, shared his gratitude to all those involved with the Golf Benefit.

“I would like to extend a congratulations to all involved with the Golf Benefit, whether you golfed, were an event sponsor, promoted the event, sold raffle tickets, recruited sponsorships, volunteered, or stayed at the hospital to serve our patients and colleagues, you were a valued part of this winning team. Please remember that you can make an impact in whatever you choose to do. This golf event began with a dream of Jonathan Kabbes, a young man who wanted to make a difference in his community. With a lot of hard work, and support of friends and family, we can all agree that he certainly has made a difference.”

For more information about the Friends of St. Anthony’s, visit the hospital’s web site at www.stanthonyshospital.org.