THUNDER BAY – Bobby Orr likes the Staal Foundation Open so much, he even offered to fly any golfers taking part from the Boston area to Thunder Bay on his private jet.
Tournament director Ken Boschoff shared that tidbit on Wednesday, as he announced the celebrity roster expected to take part in the Summer Hockey Classic and the celebrity pro-am on July 9, the opening day of the fifth installment of the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada event.
Orr, the hall-of-fame NHL defenceman, has been a mainstay at the tournament, and will be joined this year by the likes of local hockey heroes Robert Bortuzzo, free-agent-to-be Carter Hutton, retired NHL referee Kerry Fraser, ex-goaltender Trevor Kidd, former Pittsburgh Penguins defenceman Dennis Owchar and Al Secord, a one-time 50-goal scorer with the Chicago Blackhawks and Rick Vaive, who accomplished the feat twice with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Bryan Bickell, whose career was cut short by multiple sclerosis, is also on the roster, as are Olympians Haley Irwin and Katie Weatherston and Windsor Spitfires coach Trevor Letowski; and of course, Eric, Marc, Jordan and Jared Staal.
The celebrities are a welcome addition to the event each year, providing added value to fans that also get to see some of the world’s top up-and-coming golfers.
“Besides the Summer Hockey Classic, having this many personalities, whether they’re NHLers or announcers or Olympians, really puts this tournament a bit ahead of everybody else,” Boshcoff said.
“But it also lets (local) people know that these people are reachable and they also share our sense of community, and that really is the essence of the tournament.”
TSN’s Gino Reda and Glenn Schiiler, a Thunder Bay native, will also be on hand for the event, announcing the Summer Hockey Classic and taking part in the pro-am.
Also announced on Wednesday were the charity recipients of the 2018 tournament, which include the Thunder Bay Health Sciences Foundation, the George Jeffrey Children’s Centre Foundation and Camp Quality.
Camp Quality’s Ashleigh Quarrell said both the Staal Foundation Open and the Staal Family Foundation have been fantastic to her organization over the years.
“We’re grateful to have been a part of it since the beginning and to see it grow year after year and evolve is absolutely incredible,” Quarrell said.
“Certainly the dollars they have provided over the years have been integral to us being able to do the work that we do in providing uplifting and empowering experiences for kids with cancer and their families.”
George Jeffrey Children’s Centre president Tom Walters said he’s thankful his organization was chosen this year, the money being used to help create child friendly zones throughout the centre.
“It’s great to see them giving back to the community,” he said.
Over the first four years of the event, $845,000 has been raised for local charities, a figure expected to soar past $1 million in 2018.
