Golf Tournament supports Jumpstart to help kids play sports

Written By BRIAN LOCKHART

Over 80 golfers turned out to take part in a golf tournament to raise funds for Jumpstart at the Shelburne Golf & Country Club on Tuesday, October 1.

The tournament was sponsored by AllPro Roofing.

Jumpstart is a program run by Canadian Tire and Mark's Work Warehouse that helps kids take part in sports and physical activity who otherwise may not have the funds to suit up for hockey or play other sports.

This was the first year that AllPro Roofing held the tournament as a fundraiser.

They previously held golf tournaments as a social event for the company and other related business but this year they decided that since they were going to host a tournament, they would also raise money for a good cause.

“Every year we have a company tournament and this year we decided to turn it into a charity tournament,” explained AllPro roofing president Jamie Bates. “We have all our same business clientele but instead of having a corporate event, it's a charity event. Normally we have a small tournament with only 18 players. This year the funds go to Jumpstart. Jumpstart is a program for kids who can't afford to play sports. The funds raised all go back to Dufferin County Jumpstart. It's all local. All the funds are dispersed locally. We haven't done a final count yet but it looks like were going to raise close to $12,000.”

Both Canadian Tire and Mark's Work Warehouse have programs and promotions they use to add funds to the Jumpstart program.

Many families struggle with the playing fees and cost of equipment to play sport. Jumpstart uses a set of criteria to determine who they can help.

“Hockey and lacrosse are the big ones in this area because they are expensive sports to play,” Mr. Bates said. “The reason I chose this is because growing up I was playing rep hockey. I grew up with four brothers and all of us played hockey and lacrosse. Today we had 84 participants – not bad for our first year as a charity event. We had a shotgun start and scramble format. In total we had 22 groups our there.”

Several other roofing companies in the area took part in the tournament as a show of support for both the industry and the good cause they all raised money for.