Charity golf tournament aims to surpass previous donation total

NEWS RELEASE
CANADIAN METAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION ALGOMA
*****************************
On Saturday, Aug. 5, 2023, the 3rd annual Andy Buffone Memorial Tournament will be hosted at the Sault Ste. Marie Golf Club. All proceeds raised from the golf tournament will be donated to Canadian Mental Health Association Algoma, in support of mental health awareness and initiatives in our community.

After the success of the inaugural tournament, a donation of $17,000 was made to CMHA Algoma. These funds were used to help CMHA Algoma train staff to provide ASIST training across the Algoma District. Applied suicide intervention skills training, or ASIST, is an intensive, interactive, and practice-dominated course designed to help individuals recognize the risk of suicide and learn to intervene to prevent the risk of suicidal thoughts becoming suicidal behaviours.

The 2nd annual event raised over $16,000. These funds were used to train an additional two facilitators in non-violent crisis intervention (NCI) training. This training is standard for first responders, healthcare professionals, and human service professionals. Non-violent crisis intervention provides individuals with the skills to safely recognize and respond to everyday crisis situations. It includes physical intervention techniques, verbal de-escalation skills, and disengagement safety techniques.

This year, the committee is hoping to surpass the inaugural event’s donation total. The committee is looking for support in the form of sponsorships, prizes, or any contribution that the local community is willing to make. This year’s tournament will consist of a shotgun start at 1 p.m., with lunch and refreshments. Additional refreshments will also be available throughout the golf course. The dinner and post-event reception will be held at 7 p.m. on the patio of Mulligan’s Irish Pub. Live music from various local bands will play throughout the evening and everyone is welcomed to enjoy the bands.  

Registration is $150/person or $600/team and includes power cart, lunch on the course, dinner, and the chance to win some great prizes. The prizes up for grabs have been donated by many local businesses.

To register your team, please contact the committee at [email protected] to obtain the registration form. Team fees must be paid through e-transfer to CMHA Algoma.

Sponsorship packages are available. If you are interested in sponsoring or donating to this event, please contact Christina at [email protected]. Sponsorships or donations can be made by cheque or e-transfer.

*****************************