And a lot of free time for the 1st few weeks of the month was devoted to another Jimmy - Jimmy V, specifically the Jimmy V Junior Celebrity Golf Classic. For the past couple years I've been part of the core dozen or so people that coordinate the event. All our hard work resulted in 72 children golfing with 18 local celebrities (plus Lorenzo Charles) supported by another ~150 volunteers and generous sponsors that help us raise funds (estimated $50,000) for pediatric cancer research.
I can't verify it, but I believe the "Jimmy V Junior" is the only fund raiser of its type - one in which kids are the primary participants and raises funds for kids. Some of the golfers are cancer patients, even better, some are survivors.I gotta credit the sponsors for bringing in the funds, but a special shout out goes to all the volunteers from Larry, our Tournament Director, to the die-hard Standard Bearers. Sunday June 22 we overtook a bowling alley for the "Pairings Party" (catered by Moe's) where golf group pairings were announced and an auction raised additional funds (I was tempted - and won - some Red Sox memorabilia featuring Jason Varitek). On Monday volunteers started arriving at the course at 6am. The volunteers were, as usual, awesome. Random needs always crop up. Every time something needed attention, there was a volunteer (or 2) nearby ready & willing to jump in assist. And working with fellow enthusiastic volunteers for a good cause keeps me coming back.
Speaking of coming back, the main event, the "Big V" - the Jimmy V Celebrity Golf Classic in historic Pinehurst, NC is on the horizon. I'll be there - August 9th & 10th.
