Golfers will take a swing on Monday to raise money "Fore Pete's Sake" and help advance quadriplegic paralysis research and provide therapy through the QUAD Foundation.
"Our tagline is, 'To provide today's care while we search for tomorrow's cure,' and that's what we hope to do on Monday," said Peter Wilderotter, president and CEO of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, a partner with the QUAD Foundation.
The 11th annual "Fore Pete's Sake" Golf Tournament & Banquet at the Twin Oaks Golf Course on 1425 North Twin Oaks Valley Road in San Marcos will start at 10 a.m. on Monday and include lunch, golf, a cocktail reception and banquet. The early bird special at $150 per golfer has been extended, and the price for attending just the banquet is $50. The golfer's price includes a cart, lunch and the banquet, and there will be a drawing for an Apple iPad 2. The goal this year is to raise $25,000.
The QUAD Foundation was one of the first local organizations that the Reeve Foundation partnered with after Christopher and Dana Reeve died.
"We began to expand the board and made a commitment to achieve in our lifetime what they set out to achieve in theirs," Wilderotter said.
The Reeve Foundation had a similar start to the QUAD Foundation. It began with an injured 17-year-old and a community that came together and formed the American Paralysis Association, according to Wilderotter.
When actor Christopher Reeve became a quadriplegic after being thrown from a horse, he was interested in finding cures and advancing research and collaborating with the APA, with the pre-requisite of adding to the quality of life. Wilderotter said those aspects were also an interest to Pete Flynn after he was injured.
Pete Flynn suffered a spinal-cord injury when he was 20 years old after an accident involving a drunk driver, said his mother, Debbie Flynn. After the accident, friends of Debbie's put together the first golf tournament to help raise money to make her home more accessible and to purchase a vehicle for Pete.
Since then, the QUAD Foundation has provided therapy to quadriplegic clients by bringing a Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) bicycle to their homes.
"We had the bike we purchased from the first tournament and Pete wanted to share it with the people he met in rehab," Debbie Flynn said.
In the first few years of the tournament, funds were raised to purchase a trailer to bring the bike to clients' homes, and then to purchase a truck.
"All of our clients and anyone I know who suffers all have one thing in common – they want to get better," Debbie Flynn said. "The Reeve Foundation identified top researchers to support research as well in the hopes of one day not needing to take this bike around anymore."
Wilderotter will speak at the golf tournament about what life in a chair is like and the need for people to understand and be aware of the issues, including inclusivity and accessibility. Pete Flynn will also speak at the event, as well as George Chamberlin, executive editor of The Daily Transcript. Pete's uncle, Dave, will be the master of ceremonies.
To register for the golf tournament, visit quadfoundation.org.
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