I recently was invited to play in an Ellie Fund charity golf tournament to benefit breast cancer awareness and research through with al fresco all natural, one of the event sponsors. I worked with the Ford Warriors In Pink for over 2 years and feel a strong connection to the cause so I said “YES!”… despite only playing one 9 hole round in my life…
They said it didn’t matter if I was good and Nick assured me I’d be paired up with someone who knew what they were doing, most likely.
The Ellie Fund’s mission is to provide essential support services to breast cancer patients to ease the stress of everyday life, allowing the focus to be on family, recovery and healing. al fresco in partnership is committed to donating meals and products to bring comfort and nourishment to those going through treatment.
I left Tommy at my mom’s in the cape and drove up to Milton for the event at Wollaston Country Club. I was really nervous about playing 18 holes and so was my team, made up of blogger friends Tina from Carrots ‘n’ Cake, Nicole from Pumps and Iron and Jessica from 30 Something Mother Runner.
There were ways to donate and contribute at every corner of the event. Up first, participants could take a picture of themselves posing with a punching bag. For every punch thrown and picture uploaded with the hashtag #FightBackBetter, Al Fresco donated $100 to the Ellie fund up to $5,000.
If you use the hashtag #figthbackbetter still – al fresco will donate a meal to someone fighting breast cancer through The Ellie Fund!
They also donated $100 each time some one got a birdie and posted a picture to social. We knew we’d be lucky if we only went one stroke over let alone one under…
After checking in, you could buy raffle tickets to use to win prizes like ski packages, sporting event tickets and other gift certificates. There was also a silent auction in addition to the tournament.
Despite Nick being wrong and our team actually consisting of all beginners, we had a blast.
We learned the hard way that we should have spent less time talking and more time warming up before the start.
The format was a scramble, where you play your ball from the best shot out of your teammates. Nick goes golfing all the time and I had to send him a picture of my clubs to ask which ones to use for my shots. If you’re reading this and you golf, you must be feeling bad for the teams behind us. Don’t worry, it was a beautiful day and everyone was very friendly, even letting us know kindly when we didn’t follow proper etiquette (like driving on the green… oops).
By the end, we were exhausted but we made it. Golf is no joke. I wish I had brought a snack out on the course. The teams were all different levels and we really didn’t stick out too much. We probably finished close to last but we were there to have fun and represent for Al Fresco.
I shocked myself at how well I hit the ball by the end. I suppose that is why we were asked to show up early so that we had time to warm up (not catch up). I would be interested in doing more events like this perhaps with Nick, as long as I can shoot from his ball.
I’m a big fan of the Ellie Fund events. A couple years ago when I volunteered with the Junior League, we used to work a bunch of them including a black tie Oscar’s viewing party.
I bought tickets for the raffle at the start and won a $25 gift certificate to Flour, too. There were ways along the course to donate money as well like using a cannon to shoot your ball towards the hole. This was the only hole we did get a birdie on. The event raised a record of over $80,000 dollars.
Proceeds from the event will benefit the Healing Together Patient and Family Care Program, providing critical support services including transportation to medical appointments, childcare, housekeeping, groceries and prepared/delivered meals to women, men and families undergoing breast cancer treatment across Massachusetts.”
al fresco all natural is base in Chelsea, Massachusetts and makes some of my favorite chicken sausages, meatballs and patties. I love working with brands that give back to their local community.
October is breast cancer awareness month and Tommy and I will be walking in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Boston. If you’re interested in joining our team on October 2nd, let me know in the comments below. Strollers are welcome and the more the merrier!
This post was written in partnership with Al Fresco. In lieu of compensation, Al Fresco funded our team’s entry fee in exchange for sharing my experience.
