The Bonita Springs, Fla., club’s members reached their goal on March 1 after seven years of competitions, annual tennis clinics, pro-am matches, and galas. The proceeds will fund a pediatric pharmacy at the Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida.
After seven years, hundreds of tennis balls, competitions, annual tennis clinics, pro-am matches and galas, Bonita Bay Club members reached their goal on March 1 of raising more than $1 million for Barbara’s Friends to fund a pediatric pharmacy at the new Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida, the member-owned Bonita Springs, Fla., club reported.
The proceeds from the seventh annual FineMark Tour Players Tennis Classic, held February 28 and March 1 at the Bonita Bay Club Tennis Center, pushed the early total raised to $1,065,032.
A highlight of the evening’s gala, which included a fundraising auction, was a special give-to-give auction item—a crayon drawing by the event’s Most Valuable Patient, Caliah Russell, a 6-year-old cancer survivor. Rather than having one winning bidder take the drawing home, attendees pledged a total of $8,785 to have the drawing displayed in the Bonita Bay Club Pediatric Pharmacy.
The idea for the Tour Players Tennis Classic was developed in 2007, when each of 20 Bonita Bay Club members kicked in $2,000 in seed money. Club members wanted to see their dollars make a difference for children and families locally, and Barbara’s Friends was a natural fit. After the inaugural event, the committee learned of the need to expand the pediatric pharmacy in the soon-to-be-built Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida and committed to raise the needed $1 million.
Since then, club members have volunteered thousands of hours to recruit sponsors, coordinate the travel schedules of touring pros, solicit auction items, plan gala dinner dances, sell tickets, and promote and coordinate the two-day events.
“The Bonita Bay Club Pediatric Pharmacy will help to continue to ensure that young patients receive the correct medications in the proper dosages at the right times,” said Kathy Bridge-Liles, chief administrative officer for the Children’s Hospital. “This is just one part of providing the best medical care locally, so very few children have to leave the area for treatment. Keeping families together and close to home maintains some normalcy in their lives and allows parents to stay physically and emotionally close to their sick children.”
A capital campaign is under way for the new 128-bed Golisano Children’s Hospital of Southwest Florida at HealthPark. The facility is the only one of its kind between Tampa and Miami.
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