When doling out the responsibilities for our Ninth Annual Swing and a Prayer Golf Outing, we put St. Joseph in charge of the weather. He has never let us down and this was no exception. September 29th arrived with plenty of sunshine and 75⁰. It couldn’t have been a nicer day! The beautiful Ivanhoe Country Club is not only the home of a top rated golf course but, the picture perfect scenery could easily be mistaken for a vacation resort.
Special guest, former Chicago Bear, Roland Harper graciously greeted our guests during registration and lunch. After enjoying a delicious buffet lunch, our golfers tried their luck at “Putting against a Sister”. Rookie golfer, Sr. Mary Alphonsus, raised many an eyebrow as she frequently sunk her putts. It often took several tries to beat her!
The noon shot gun start sent our golfers out to the Forest and Marsh courses. The yellow duck were flying on the ever popular Rubber Duck Longest Drive, on Marsh Hole #2. The squeaking ‘quackers’ could be heard all around the course. Mother Marguerite shared hitting strategies, as golfers tried to hit the ducks the farthest to win a Robbie Gould autographed football.
A busload of Residents arrived early afternoon to join in the festivities. From their seats on the beautiful patio overlooking the course, or in a golf cart driven by a Little Sister, they greeted and cheered on the golfers!
Once again the chefs at Ivanhoe outdid themselves as our hungry guests enjoyed a delicious three station international (Mexican, Italian and American) dinner buffet. Mother Marguerite welcomed everyone and thanked our golfers for coming. She shared the joy of our Residents as they spent the afternoon with the golfers. She also spoke about how grateful we are for their participation in a Swing and a Prayer Golf Outing and how we count on the money raised to financially support our operating expenses.
After listening to Mother Marguerite speak about our efforts to raise enough money to replace the walk-in freezer that has completely broken down, our guests generously answered the call! More than $13,000 was raised towards the cost of a new freezer!
“Blessed be God!”
A Swing and a Prayer