Mercy Haven’s 22nd Annual Golf Outing
“Happiness is a long walk with a putter” – Greg Norman
A picture-perfect June day greeted us for our 22nd Annual Golf Outing, which took place once again at the elegant Hamlet Golf and Country Club in Commack, offering up a challenging course and an exceptional networking experience on and off the greens. Friends, old and new, golfed with us this year and we are truly grateful for their support. The outing began with registration, breakfast, and Bloody Mary’s in the Ballroom, followed by a 12:00 shotgun start. The all-day event hosted 126 golfers plus an additional 96 dinner guests and raised over $132,000 in vital funds, our highest amount to date!
The recipient of our 2022 Bud Harrelson Award was Alex Bateman of Ruskin, Moscou, Faltischek, P.C. This award is lovingly named in honor of Bud Harrelson, retired player and coach for the NY Mets and Co-Owner of the LI Ducks, who has been a friend to Mercy Haven for many years. Bud was honored at our 2018 Golf Outing for his unwavering and kind support and we continue to honor him by paying tribute to those who embody his same spirit of friendship and generosity. Alex is this person. He is a caring neighbor and eager supporter, who puts great energy into giving back to his communities. He is a vocal advocate of our services for crisis populations, spreading the word and introducing us to others, including his family who are active volunteers, and his firm, who support us throughout the year.
Our Tournament Sponsor was Flushing Bank, a proud Gold Business Partner of Mercy Haven. Special thanks, also, to our Bronze Business Partners: E.B.C., Co., Farrell Fritz, P.C., Hendrickson Fuels, NYCB, Ridgewood Savings Bank, Ruskin Moscou Faltischek, P.C., and South Shore University Hospital.
As our guests were enjoying their dinner, Executive Director, Sister Pat Griffith greeted them with a warm introduction of our speaker, Jeremy, a resident in our Supportive Housing program where he lives with his wife and 2 daughters. “We were homeless and living in shelters before coming to Mercy Haven”, he shares. “My life was unsettled due to poor choices, unemployment, and incarceration.” A winter evening’s visit with his family to the soup kitchen at St. Patrick’s Church, Bay Shore, changed his life in an instant. S. Kathy Nolan was serving and recruiting for her homeless education and outreach program, Breakthrough, when she approached Jeremy with an introduction and an invitation to join. Grateful for this opportunity, he agreed immediately and began making necessary changes needed to be approved for housing. We welcomed Jeremy and his family into our new housing complex in Central Islip just one week before the Golf Outing. He is working and getting his life back on track, thanks to the chance meeting on that cold winter evening.
Sister Pat extended words of thanks to our guests and expressed that “coming together today brings a blessing of just being surrounded by people’s goodness. A needed blessing for sure.” She referenced the despair of the ongoing war in Ukraine and the senseless shootings in Buffalo and Ugalde that continue to plague our nation as reasons to retreat and withdraw. “Yet, you continue to show up,” she continues. “Your presence today helps us to give 350+ persons the care that is so needed in having their own home. The threat of homelessness and/or violence touches many of our families as does the challenge of living with mental illness. The journey of caring for one another still needs to be expanded.” She continues to be encouraged by the spirit of generosity which is shown in so many ways today and throughout the year.
The evening continued with golfers and guests taking chances on raffles and silent auction prizes, as well as a 50/50-Split-the-Pot raffle. We introduced a carnival-style Wine Toss Raffle this year, which was received with great success. The Live Auction featured our very own professional auctioneer and committee member, Dave Winter, who offered up Met’s tickets, a Sebonack twosome, and a St. George’s threesome just to name a few. Our raffles were a complete success, as evidenced by the generosity of our guests. Board Member Jim DiGiovanni, who served as our Golf Committee Chair stood and thanked the committee for their tireless efforts and presented gift cards to the contest winners. A great day of golf, partnered with warm wishes for the year, lead us to look FOREward to next year, our 23rd Annual Golf Outing!
