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Service Transport, Inc. hosted the 1st Annual Bonnie Hilghman / Marci Bee Dayton Golf Tournament on June 25th at the Caroline Country Club. By all accounts it was a resounding success with 28 teams vying for top honors while supporting community causes.
“We are so pleased with the turnout and the spirit everyone showed. It was a wonderful day. Through the participation of individuals and businesses the event should net close to $20,000,” Duane Hilghman, co-chair of the event, happily reported. Kelly Dayton, mother of Marci Bee Dayton, was the other co-chair.
A committee started planning early in the spring and put together an impressive list of sponsors, including 78 hole sponsors. Most support came from the local community, although some of Hilghman’s business associates from across the country helped with a few sponsorships. Teams were comprised of business associates and private individuals: all with the same goal of helping two, local, worthy causes.
Low gross honors were won by the team of John Northrop, Scott Northrop, Jerry Wilcoxon and Kris Wilcoxon. Low net honors went to the team of Mike Gast, Mike Hawkins, Nash McMahan and April Hardesty.
All participants were also given the opportunity to purchase ‘mulligan packages’. They were extremely popular and the number of purchasable mulligans had to be limited. Included in the packages were raffle tickets, and a chance to enter the putting contest.
In the true spirit of a fundraiser, the winners of both the 50-50 raffle and the putting contest (Alice Bower and Dave Whaley, respectively) both donated their winnings back to benefit the Tournament. One foursome even offered $1,000 for four hamburgers if they could be delivered to them out on the course! Needless to say the burgers were delivered!
All the funds raised by the tournament will be split between the Bonnie Hilghman Cancer Fund and the Marci Bee Dayton Memorial Fund. The Bonnie Hilghman Cancer Fund supports cancer patients in the Mid- Shore region, predominately striving to provide them the extra, and often not covered by insurance, support they need to enable them to focus on fighting their disease. This fund was established to memorialize the generous and loving spirit of Bonnie Hilghman and the positive attitude she displayed during her lengthy, courageous battle with cancer.
Marci Bee Dayton was only 14 years old when she died in May 2005. Her Memorial Fund has been established to provide financial assistance to pediatric patients and their families within our local community. A Scholarship Fund is also being planned. Its first scholarship will be granted in 2009, the year Marci would have graduated from high school, and will focus on graduates pursuing a future in a medical field.
Both the Bonnie Hilghman Cancer Fund and the Marci Bee Dayton Memorial Funds have been established through the Mid-Shore Community Foundation. The Foundation provides administrative support and managerial expertise to these funds so they can concentrate on their missions.
“The Mid-Shore Community Foundation’s mission is to promote and facilitate philanthropy in the 5-county mid-shore community. By smoothing out the legal and administrative processes of establishing a fund, the foundation helps people realize their charitable dreams and helps philanthropy flourish in our community,” says Barbara Lane, the foundation’s director of donor relations.
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