Golfers raise $45,000 to help Red Cross

A golf tournament hosted by the Cayman Islands Red Cross and Royal Bank of Canada last month raised more than $45,000 for the local Red Cross branch.

The 21st annual golf tournament, which is a key fundraiser for the Red Cross, was held on Sept. 7 at the North Sound Golf Club. The tournament was won by the Solomon Harris team, made up of Tom Wright, Kai McGriele, Dallas Nathan and David Brosnan.

Cayman Islands Red Cross Director Jondo Obi commended the Royal Bank of Canada for again sponsoring the event.

“That we can count on their support for this event every year really speaks volumes of what we have built together,” she said. Sponsorship from Trac Automotive, GT Motors and Mercedes-Benz meant golfers could vie to win a car, in hole-in-one efforts, on three separate holes.

Michelob Ultra (Cayman Distributors Group) sponsored a special “Chippo putting contest,” which specifically supported the Red Cross Shelter From the Storm campaign. Shelter From the Storm is the organization’s capital campaign that was launched earlier this year to raise funds to assist in the renovation of the Red Cross hurricane shelter and headquarters building in order to make it safer and more accessible.

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The tournament continues to be a key fundraiser to cover the Red Cross in its main operational costs and fund the main community programs – Disaster Management, Child Protection and Sexuality Education, First Aid and Lifeguarding, and the Thrift Shop Community Outreach program.

“The funds that we raise translate into community training, like our volunteers and CERTS. It helps us prepare for hurricane season so that we can respond should disaster hit, it helps us assist the most vulnerable, and to continue our awareness, education and prevention efforts throughout the year,” Ms. Obi said in a press release.

Proceeds from the annual golf tournament, other than the Chippo putting contest, will not be used for the Shelter From the Storm capital campaign, Ms. Obi pointed out.

“It’s important to make the distinction between the capital campaign and this tournament,” she said. “This tournament helps to keep our doors open and our programs running. The capital campaign is separate and apart, as additional funds are needed to get our building to code and make it more accessible to all.

“That is why this has posed such a challenge to us as an organisation: We have to do both things simultaneously.”

For more information on the Cayman Islands Red Cross, its programs, or to make a donation to the Shelter From the Storm campaign, visit www.redcross.org.ky or email [email protected] or [email protected].