(Posted 9:30 a.m., June 11)
Lacroix Sports golf tournament raises $45,000 for local charities
By Fred Sherwin
Orléans Online

Orleans Blues owner André Chaput, André Lacroix and Montreal Canadiens head coach Claude Julien get set to tee off at this year's Lacroix Source for Sports Golf Tournament. Fred Sherwin/Photo

For the second straight year the Lacroix Source for Sports Charity Golf Tournament was blessed with great weather and an even greater turnout on Friday as some 350 golfers teed off at the Outaouais Golf and Country Club in Rockland for the pentultimate staging of the annual event.

Organizer André Lacroix plans to retire from the tournament business next year after raising more than $1 million over the past 30 years for a slew of charities.

“Thirty years is enough. After next year maybe someone else will run it, I’m already talking to some groups, but that’s it for me,” says Lacroix.

This year’s primary beneficiaries are the Montfort Hospital, which will be getting the second instalment of $33,000; the Source For Sports’ national “Shoot For A Cure” campaign to help find a cure for and prevent spinal injuries will be getting another $5,000; the Kinsmen which will be getting $1,000 to go toward the fight against Cystic Fybrosis, and a variety of other groups and individuals will be getting smaller amounts bringing the total payout this year to over $45,000.

Lacroix’s day started at sunrise, setting up sponsor signs and making sure everything was ready for the first tee off at 7:30 a.m. By 7:30 p.m. he was still going strong.

“It’s been terrific. The weather was perfect, everyone had a great time and we raised lots of money for the charities,” said the always energetic Lacroix.

For the sixth straight year, the Outaouais “Dream Team” of Willie Walker, Michael Walker, Alex Lebeau and Gil Julien walked away with the tournament trophy after posting a 13-under 59.

Unfortunately, no one was able to drive away with one of the new cars put up by Marcel Belanger Pontiac Buick being offered to anyone who was able to shoot a hole-in-one on any of the par threes.

Legally blind golfer Kevin Frost tees off during the Lacroix Source for Sports Golf Tournament on Friday as his guide dog Nemo looks the other way. Fred Sherwin/Photo

There were winners in other catgories however. Brian Murphy won the Closest to the Pin Contest on the south course, while Denis Dagenais won Closest to the Pin on the east course. In the Longest Putt competition, Lloyd Rockburn won on the south course while Pierre Gauthier took the honours on the east course.

Back again as the tournament captain this year was Montreal Canadiens head coach Claude Julien who first started taking part in the tournament more than 22 years ago when he was playing junior.

“It’s too bad Andy has decided to stop doing the tournament next year. He’s done so much for the community, he’s a real hero to a lot of people,” says Julien who bought his first pair of skates from Lacroix Source for Sports.

One of the biggest reasons for the success of this year’s tournament is the continued support of sponsors like Caisse Populaire Orléans who contributed $15,000 a year as part of a three year commitment. Other sponsors include Telus, Brigil Homes and many, many more.

Besides contributions from sponsors and the tournament entrance fee, money was raised through a variety of other means including raffles, a silent auction of sports memorabilia and items such as a Montreal Canadians jersey signed by the entire team.

With the amount of goodwill and funds that are generated by the tournament it’s easy to see why Lacroix will be walking away from the tournament with a heavy heart.

“We were supposed to stop at 20, but it was so much fun we kept going,” says Lacroix. “The volunteers and everyone are so fantastic. They just say, ‘Andy, what can we do?’ It’s repeat, repeat, repeat. A lot of the same people keep coming back. The support from everyong has been amazing.”

(This story was made possible thanks to the generous support of our local business partners.)

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