SHAW CHARITY CLASSIC
$12M raised for Alberta youth
The success of the Shaw Charity Classic has become amazingly hohum, impressively predictable, for Jim Riddell.
Every year, now six and counting, organizers of the professional golf tournament set a pie-in-thesky fundraising goal.
Every year, they have made a habit of shattering their own record for the largest charitable gift in PGA Champions Tour history.
They continued the tradition Wednesday, revealing at a special celebration at the Calgary Tower that the 2018 instalment raised a staggering $12,357,863 for youthbased charities throughout the province.
Another record.
“I sign the cheques every year and there are 180 different cheques to different entities that are all putting that money to good use,” Riddell said. “That’s my moment when I see it all.
“It’s always hard to be able to directly comprehend the impact, but we sure meet a lot of people throughout the year that know the impact it has made at their level, and it’s always great to hear those stories.”
Most of those charities were represented Wednesday, a celebration that also had a sombre tone as staffers, sponsors and supporters mourned the loss of Clay Riddell, the oil icon and philanthropist who founded the Shaw Charity Classic at his home hangout of Canyon Meadows Golf & Country Club.
Clay Riddell died in mid-September at age 81. He will be succeeded as chair of the tournament patron group by his son, Jim.
“This was always one of my dad’s favourite days — gathering with all of the incredible charities connected to the Shaw Charity Classic who are doing remarkable things for our children in the community,” Jim Riddell said. “So, today, I know that Clay is celebrating this incredible achievement with us. And if you know my dad, tomorrow morning he would have been telling us about how we were going to do even better in 2019.”
Sometimes, he wouldn’t even wait that long.
It was just hours after Scott McCarron — now the two-time reigning champion — drained the winning putt at Canyon Meadows in 2017 that Clay Riddell first floated his lofty goal for the following year. He wanted to raise $10 million. Consider it done, and then some. Title sponsor Shaw Communications got the ball rolling with a seven-figure donation.
Through the Shaw Birdies for Kids presented by AltaLink program, more than 3,000 Canadians from coast to coast chipped in with contributions of their own.
The most impressive stat of all, perhaps, is that north of 500,000 youngsters — enough to fill every seat at the Saddledome 26 times — will be affected by the money raised by the latest edition of the senior golf shootout.
“That’s a half million kids who now have access to services and opportunities that they need to live a better life thanks to this amazing event,” said Brad Shaw, CEO of Calgary-based Shaw Communications.
Any way you slice it, the numbers are remarkable.
In just six years, the Shaw Charity Classic has raised upwards of $34 million.
“It’s a special thing that we have here, and it’s a special thing we want to maintain and we want to be able to grow,” Shaw said. “I think it goes to show you the need, and it shows you the opportunity by having everyone work together with a real focus on raising the bar. And I think that’s what we’ve been able to achieve.
“When I hear what these great golfers have to say about it and how proud they are, I think, ‘Holy, what are we doing so different?’ Well, it’s community. It’s reflective of Calgary and all the energy. Every single person here cares. No matter where we are with the economy or whatever is going on, we all want to have an impact and I think this is a great opportunity and a great way to do it.”
The stars of the PGA Champions Tour will return to Canyon Meadows from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1, 2019.
Sometime between now and then, Shaw Charity Classic organizers will set another hard-to-fathom fundraising goal.
There is no reason to doubt they will exceed that mark.
It’s a tradition, just the way Clay Riddell wanted it.
“It’s never been about the golf, never was ... He did it so that the community would be a better place,” said Jim Riddell, an original member of the tournament patron group. “It has totally exceeded what my expectations were when we first sat down and talked about it. You never know with Clay whether that was over his expectations — he’s not one to share those — but I expect it has blown his expectations away, too.
“He would be proud of what it’s become.”