Donations will stay local and help mid-Michigan families
Published: July 20, 2011
LANSING, Mich. - The late Tom Auvenshine may have lost the fight against cancer, but his family continues the battle by raising funds to benefit local patients and their loves ones.
A "Tee Off For Tom" four-person golf benefit scramble is set for July 30 at Centennial Acres Golf Course in Sunfield, Michigan. Proceeds will go to the Sparrow Foundation to be used at Sparrow, where an inpatient room was recently dedicated to Auvenshine.
"The Sparrow staff was amazing," said Auvenshine's son, Adam. "These nurses deal with so many people every day, but they befriended him and took time to go to my dad's funeral."
Auvenshine, a Charlotte resident and area farmer and UPS employee, was a special person to many in the mid-Michigan region, including the Sparrow staff who cared for him for three months. His family said his friendly and outgoing nature made him popular with many coaches and staff at Michigan State University who came to know him as "Trinket Tom" for all the UPS pens, cups, hats and T-shirts he was known to hand out. His family recently made a generous donation to the Sparrow Foundation and hopes funds raised in the golf benefit might be used to create patient and family enrichment rooms.
The Sparrow Cancer Center offers comprehensive services including surgery, chemo, radiation, and drug therapies. Staff is committed to a unique, compassionate approach that works to instill hope and healing, as well as addressing the physical needs of patients.
"It takes very special caregivers to take care of people who are going through cancer treatment. I want them to have everything they need," Adam Auvenshine said.
To register for the "Tee off for Tom" benefit golf scramble visit www.bigtee.org/sparrow-foundation.html or call Centennial Acres Golf Course at 517.566.8055.