President Philip Callen announced the total and presented checks to representatives from the five charities including Arc Greater Twin Cities, The Arc of Minnesota, ProAct, Dakota Communities, and the Learning Disabilities Program of Children’s Home Society and Family Services. Shaun Irwin, President of Anderson Agency, the Presenting Sponsor of the Tapemark Pro-Am, was on hand to congratulate the agencies and thanked them for their hard work in improving the lives of people with disabilities.

“We’re so proud to say that in the celebration of our 40th year, we were able to bring our year-to-date total donations to over $6.6 million” announced Tapemark Pro-Am Vice-Chairman Robert Klas, Jr. “Each year we feel so privileged to be able to make such a difference, and agree that for us, this is by far the best day of the year.”

In addition to distributing funds, the Pro-Am had another big announcement: in 2012 the Pro-Am will feature a new Women’s Pro-Am as part of the event. The Tapemark Women’s Pro-Am will be the only women’s Pro-Am in Minnesota, and the Women’s Professional Championship will be the first of its kind in the state.

In the 41st year of the Tournament, Women Professional and Amateur golfers will play on Tuesday, June 5th with a Championship round on Sunday, June 10th. Based on the same format of the successful Men’s Event, teams will be captained by a Woman Professional golfer, and teams will be drawn randomly to include an A, B, and C amateur. A Women’s Professional Purse will be available to all competitors, and this will mark a full week of Pro-Am events.

The week begins on June 3rd with a Drawing of Teams Banquet, Women’s Event Day one June 5th (with both a competitive flight and a one-day tournament for non-handicapped women’s golfers), Men’s play on June 8 and 9, and then the week will culminate with Championship Play on Sunday, June 10 in both the Men’s and Women’s Event. Building on a 40-year tradition, the trophy presentation that day will see an increased Pro-Am purse of more than $50,000! All rounds are played at host and sponsor Southview Country Club, and registration will open in early January 2012 at tapemarkgolf.org.

The team event finished in a tie between team 14 (Benoit, Hayne, Winsor and Tinucci) and team 40 (Carlson, Prosser, Borgeson and Passe) at -60.

More information to follow…

Thank you to all the competitors at the 17th Annual Tapemark Charity Women’s Golf Event, held Monday, Sept 19th at Southview Country Club. The weather cooperated fully with beautiful sunshine, and we shared a glorious afternoon of camraderie, competition, and most importantly, raising charitable funds to change the lives of people with developmental and learning disabilities.

We could not have done it without the critical support of our major sponsors: Anderson Ageny * US Bank * Southview Country Club * Tapemark Company * Travelers * Langer Commercial Real Estate * Lifeworks * PreferredOne * Langer Commercial Real Estate * TSE, Inc. * Associated Wealth Management

Congratulations to our 2011 Flight Winners!

Championship Flight – Amy Ament & Mary Warian
1st Flight - Jeri Meola & Katie Gordon
2nd Flight - Kathy Daleki & Jane Hill
Fun Flight #1 – Jane Meger & Kim Osbeck
Fun Flight #2  - Dianne Carlson & Vanessa Greer

And thanks to all our players for their generous financial support!

Tom, who has Down syndrome, attends church with his family and has been active in his church for years.
Tim, whose spinal cord injury requires him to use a wheelchair, edits a local newspaper.

Michael, a kindergartner with Down syndrome, circulates among adults and children, flashing a huge smile and extending his hand to everyone he sees. Just a couple of decades ago, all three would likely have lived in an institution, shut off from society, their lives disregarded and their gifts denied.

Judy Blackford and her husband take care of their adult son John, who has autism and spina bifida. She is passionate about sharing John’s story. Thanks to school programs and job supports, John has a good job, earns a good wage, and volunteers in his community. His earnings pay for physical therapy that keeps him strong so he can maintain mobility and stay healthy and active.

Steve Hayes and his family care for son Brett, who has severe developmental challenges, including frequent seizures and a tendency to wander if unattended.

Life for the Hayes’ is next to impossible without outside support. Personal care attendants who help care for Brett enable Steve and his wife Maureen to do laundry, mow the lawn, and meet the needs of their other children — ordinary tasks that make any household function.

“People who don’t have a child with disabilities don’t understand how consuming it can be,” Steve stressed. “It’s non-stop. Brett needs help with every activity in his life — washing, showering, diapering, feeding, watching TV, walking…everything. As he gets bigger and stronger, his care becomes more demanding.”

The Hayes’ look to the future, and they’re worried. “As Maureen and I age, our biggest fear is our continuing ability to care for Brett,” Steve says. “We’ve applied for a place for Brett to live eventually in the community, but we’ve been on a waiting list for almost eight years and have been told not to expect an opening anytime soon.”

Now, supports that have made such a difference for so many families are threatened by state budget cuts. 5,000 families wait for services. Some, like the Hayes family, wait years. As Steve said, “Too many families have passed their breaking point.” How can we talk about making dramatic cuts to services when we have so many unmet needs among those who need supports so badly?

Judith talks about her concerns for her son and others with disabilities. “I believe we are at a critical juncture for society, for humanity, for our spiritual values,” she said. “Cutting back on human services for people with disabilities reminds me of the days when they were devalued, and I fear we are heading in that direction again,” she said. “People with disabilities need our voices to say that they matter to us, that we love them, and this will not happen on our watch!”

About The Arc of Minnesota

The Arc of Minnesota provides support and advocy for people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities and their families. As the state organization, The Arc of Minnesota provides leadership in partnering with 13 local and regional Arc chapters across Minnesota to provide information, educational opportunities, support, advocacy and assistance to individuals with disabilities and their families across Minnesota.

The Arc of Minnesota is a leader in the disability community in efforts to advocate for public policies that provide critical services and supports for people with disabilities and their families. The Arc has made a huge difference in the lives of people with developmental disabilities and their families for over 50 years.