The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp named PGA TOUR Charity of the Year
Travelers Championship’s charity beneficiary awarded $30,000 grant from PGA TOUR
PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — The PGA TOUR announced today that The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, a Connecticut-based beneficiary of the Travelers Championship, has been named the 2014 PGA TOUR Charity of the Year.
The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp is dedicated to providing “a different kind of healing” to seriously ill children and their families throughout the Northeast, free of charge. It’s a community that celebrates the fun, friendship and spirit of childhood where every kid can “raise a little hell”.
“We are deeply honored to be recognized as Charity of the Year by the PGA TOUR, a sports organization that shares with our Founder Paul Newman a distinctive and longstanding commitment to charities,” said James Canton, Chief Executive Officer of The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. “What makes this honor all the more meaningful is the Camp’s enduring friendship with the Travelers Championship and its title sponsor Travelers, who stand in unwavering solidarity with our brave children and their families.”
The award comes with a $30,000 grant from the PGA TOUR to help The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp provide this unique healing experience to kids coping with cancer, sickle cell disease, hemophilia and other serious illnesses, including those children who may not be able to come to Camp. Through a variety of year-round programs onsite at the Camp’s facility in Ashford, Conn., and outreach programming in hospitals, communities and camper homes throughout its service region, The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp now provides more than 30,000 healing experiences annually.
“The impact The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp has on the children it serves can only be described as magical. At Travelers, we are continually inspired by the dedicated staff, volunteers and campers who see beyond the limitations of illness to achieve great things,” said Travelers Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer Andy Bessette. “We’re pleased that one of the charities that is important to us has received this recognition from the PGA TOUR and hope others will be inspired by what Paul Newman created and help to carry the torch into the future.”
“We feel very fortunate to be able to support Camp and its mission,” said Travelers Championship Tournament Director Nathan Grube. “You only need to meet one camper or one parent whose lives have been transformed by their experience at camp and you feel privileged to be able to support their mission.”
The 2014 Travelers Championship was won by Kevin Streelman, and the 2015 Travelers Championship will be held June 22-28 at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Conn.
About the Travelers Championship
As the first PGA TOUR event of the season in the Northeast, the Travelers Championship is one of the region’s premier sporting events. The tournament proudly supports the PGA TOUR’s Tradition of Giving Back by donating 100 percent of net proceeds to charity. The title sponsor of the event is Travelers, a leading provider of property casualty insurance for home, auto and business. Travelers has been doing business in the community for more than 150 years and today has more than 7,000 employees in Connecticut. The Official Property Casualty Insurance Provider of the PGA TOUR, Travelers has been a corporate sponsor of this event each year since its inception in 1952, becoming title sponsor in 2007. Complete details are available on www.TravelersChampionship.com.
About PGA TOUR
The PGA TOUR is the world’s premier membership organization for touring professional golfers, co-sanctioning more than 130 tournaments on the PGA TOUR, Champions Tour, Web.com Tour, PGA TOUR Latinoamérica, PGA TOUR Canada and PGA TOUR China.
The PGA TOUR’s mission is to entertain and inspire its fans, deliver substantial value to its partners, create outlets for volunteers to give back, generate significant charitable and economic impact in the communities in which it plays, and provide financial opportunities for TOUR players.
Worldwide, PGA TOUR tournaments are broadcast to more than 1 billion households in 225 countries and territories in 32 languages. Virtually all tournaments are organized as non-profit organizations in order to maximize charitable giving. In 2014, tournaments across all Tours generated more than $134 million for local and national charitable organizations and in early 2014 the TOUR’s all-time charitable contributions surpassed $2 billion.
The PGA TOUR’s web site is PGATOUR.COM, the No. 1 site in golf, and the organization is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL.
CONTACT
Joel Schuchmann, PGA TOUR, 904-280-4707, joelschuchmann@pgatourhq.com
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