Thomas Porteus Jr. Memorial Golf tourney supporting local children with diabetes
Family and friends of a Lockport man are once again hitting the golf course in memory of their late loved one. The ninth annual Thomas Porteus Jr. Memorial Golf Tournament will take place at the Niagara County Golf Course in Lockport, New York. Proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Thomas C. Porteus. Jr. Charitable Foundation, a not-for-profit organization supporting children and young adults with type 1 diabetes. The foundation has previously donated to UBMD Pediatric Endocrinology Clinic and Oishei Children’s Hospital in Buffalo to support children and their families who struggle to cover the cost of diabetic supplies. The long-term goal of the foundation is to raise money to acquire and train a diabetic alert dog for a child with type1 diabetes.
Publié : 3 semaines plus tôt par Thomas Tedesco | [email protected] dans Sports Health
LOCKPORT — Family and friends are once again hitting the golf course in memory of their late loved one.
On Sunday, they will be hosting the ninth annual Thomas Porteus Jr. Memorial Golf Tournament at the Niagara County Golf Course. Proceeds from the tournament and a basket raffle will go toward the Thomas C. Porteus Jr. Charitable Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that supports children and young adults who live with type 1 diabetes.
“It’s sort of a homegrown charity that supports local people exclusively,” Porteus’ brother-in-law Jim Hardy said.
“Each year gets bigger and more people have come out to support it,” Hardy said.
Previously the foundation has donated the money to UBMD Pediatric Endocrinology Clinic and Oishei Children’s Hospital in Buffalo to support children and their families who struggle to cover the cost of diabetic supplies. The foundation sent 6 children last year to Camp Aspire, a summer camp near Rochester for children diagnosed with diabetes.
Even when Porteus, a 1992 graduate of Lockport High School and avid golfer, worked for the Miami Dade Sheriff’s Department, he lived near a golf course where he would play regularly.
Porteus also lived with diabetes for most of his life, having been diagnosed with type 1 when he was just six years old.
When he died unexpectedly in September 2014 at age 39, from diabetic ketoacidosis, his family and friends decided his passion for golf was the best way to honor his memory.
Hardy said a long-term goal of the foundation is to raise money to acquire and train a diabetic alert dog for a child with type 1 diabetes, which they hope to raise enough funds for this year.
“The rationale is that people who live alone, and that’s what happened with Tommy, is that he had a reaction when he was home and there was no one there. With a dog, they can identify if you’re having an issue... before it’s too late, so that help can be called,” Hardy said.
When the event first started in 2015, friends Joe Anderson and Brian Stevens weren’t sure what impact it might have.
“Brian and I were talking like, ‘I guess if it’s a success, we’ll do it next year,’” Anderson recalled in a 2023 interview. “Every year got bigger and bigger with sponsors and donations. So then we go to the third year, the fourth year and it just kept growing and growing.”
This year there will be about 40 teams of four golfers each, mostly consisting of Porteus’ friends and family, taking part in the tournament.
A basket raffle will be open to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. In addition to various baskets, and gift cards, Buffalo Bills and Sabres memorabilia and tickets to a Notre Dame football game will be raffled off.
Les sujets: Golf