Celebri-tees
LOREN BENOIT/PressNHL Tampa Bay Lightning Head Coach Jon Cooper and Canadian former professional ice hockey player and coach Wayne Gretzky pose for a photo during The Showcase at The Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course on Saturday.
LOREN BENOIT/Press American singer/songwriter Darius Rucker jokes with NHL player Tyler Johnson while on the first hole during The Showcase on Saturday at The Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course.
LOREN BENOIT/PressSpectators and fans watch Detlef Schempf's iron shot land on the fairway during The Showcase Saturday afternoon at The Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course.
COEUR d’ALENE — The golf ball made a singing sound as it met with Wayne Gretzky's club and went sailing down the fairway.
The legendary hockey player was one of the first to tee off Saturday during the fourth annual Showcase golf event at The Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course.
“It was really cool to see him," said Matt Johnstun of Coeur d'Alene, who attended with his wife, Amanda, and their 5-year-old golf-loving son, Jayce. "He’s the ‘Great One,’ you know, one of the greatest hockey players of all time."
In a group following Gretzky’s was Alfonso Ribeiro, host of "America’s Funniest Home Videos," a past champion of "Dancing with the Stars" and who formerly played Carlton Banks on "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."
Ribeiro also struck his golf ball with a mighty swing, and those in attendance had a good laugh at his commentary.
“Y’all see how fast that was!? Them trees aren’t in my way,” he said to the smiling audience.
More than two dozen actors, athletes, musicians and more enjoyed a beautiful sunny day in Coeur d’Alene playing golf for a cause. The Showcase is a fundraiser for the Community Cancer Fund, an organization that helps combat cancer in the Northwest by supporting and donating to entities such as Cancer Care Northwest, Kootenai Health and Ronald McDonald House charities.
The event raised $5.8 million in its first three years and is expected to net at least the $3.47 million it did last year.
Matt said he loves how the funds from this event support local cancer efforts. He shared that he has a personal tie to the cause because his mom is battling cancer.
"It means a lot to me that this kind of event goes on to help people like her fight the fight," he said. "I wanted to donate at least with my ticket to give something. Everyone’s in it together, everyone knows someone who’s been affected."
The Community Cancer Fund and the Showcase were founded by executive director Jerid Keefer, Ryan Gee and Fritz Wolff.
“Every year we’ve just tried to get better, and whether that’s the event itself, or the fundraising, it’s just great," Keefer said. "From the celebrities to the sponsors, across the board, the level of support is amazing."
The Community Cancer Fund is presently working on its capstone project, the Kootenai Health Hospitality Center, which will serve as a home away from home for patients and their families. Keefer said he expects it to break ground early in 2018 with a completion date of late ’18 or early ’19.
"We worked with Kootenai Health and it was an area of need they identified," Keefer said. "They’ve outgrown the current Walden House, but I think we could take that vision the Walden family had some 30 years ago and continue to provide for these patients and these families."
Gee said the support they've seen inside and outside of the community for the Showcase and the Community Cancer Fund is just surreal.
“There’s obviously something special that’s happening here when all of the celebrities have continued to come back. And not only have the attendees come back, but they’ve brought friends," he said. "There's a reason it’s called the 'Community Cancer Fund.' There’s definitely a sense of community here."
Info: www.showcasegolf.com