Catholic education foundation hosts annual fundraiser golf tourney
The Medicine Hat Catholic Schools Education Foundation held its annual fundraiser tournament at Cottonwood Coulee golf course Friday.
The sun was shining, the cottonwood leaves were swaying, the fairways were green — not much could dampen the spirit of the day, says foundation chair Rob Stroh. Not even the wind.
“The wind is giving us a little bit of trouble today but we never complain about the wind. Just the same, the golf balls may be slicing a little more to the left than usual,” he said with a laugh.
“It’s so much fun,” agreed fellow director Byron Martin. “You get to meet people from the community. We have a nice lunch and meet everybody that’s playing. It’s great camaraderie amongst everybody.”
The annual fundraiser has been running for the past 15 years. It is the foundation’s major fundraising event over the course of the year, usually raising about $9,000, says Martin.
“We have several different projects we fund. We help the schools with the things they need the government doesn’t pay for. And we fund everything pertaining to the Catholic education part of things — conferences for the teachers and stuff like that.”
But it goes far beyond just providing the necessities of good, basic Catholic education, says Stroh.
“Education is important in general, and our work helps give back to the community. Right now our students are young people. Once they achieve their career goals, they come back and they support our community, and that enhances everybody’s life here in Medicine Hat.
“What we really do is enhance education,” emphasizes Stroh. “We are really focused on making leaders for tomorrow — that’s our main goal.”
About 85 golfers took part in this year’s tournament.