Hockey Hall of Famer and Avalanche Executive Vice President and General Manager Joe Sakic and his wife Debbie care deeply about hungry kids. This dynamic duo champions the fight to end childhood hunger by hosting the Joe Sakic Celebrity Golf Tournament and Bringing Hope to the Table Dinner. For the past 18 years, these two events fund a large portion of Food Bank of the Rockies’ children’s feeding programs, providing millions of meals and hope to little ones who don’t have enough to eat. What inspires Joe and Debbie to tackle this challenge? Stories like 12-year-old Ryan’s.
Ryan felt anxious as school let out last spring because he and his 8-year-old sister Sara could no longer eat school breakfast and lunch. He waited until the other kids left the cafeteria and filled his pockets with apples, rolls, even packets of mayonnaise. The cafeteria worker noticed and asked him if he was hungry.
“I’m not hungry now,” he replied. “I’m trying to stock up so me and my sister will have food to eat during the summer.”
Ryan is one of the nearly 1 in 4 Colorado kids living in a food insecure household. Food insecurity is another way of saying these struggling families don’t always have enough money to eat – maybe only at the end of the month due to parents’ low wages, and in some cases, maybe over a weekend or even all summer, due to circumstances far beyond a child’s control.
The cafeteria worker realized the seriousness of Ryan’s situation and told Ryan’s family about Food Bank of the Rockies’ programs for kids. This summer, Ryan and Sara have enjoyed a healthy lunch five days a week through the food bank’s summer lunch program. And when school starts, they can eat dinner at through a Food Bank of the Rockies Kids Cafe, even take home Totes of Hope® food bags on Friday afternoons, so they’ll have something to eat over the weekend. Joe and Debbie Sakic, along with all the golfers, dinner attendees and sponsors, helped provide many of the meals that nourish Ryan and his sister.
Golfers will once again gather at Sanctuary Golf Course to play the challenging course and rub shoulders with sports celebrities for the 18th Annual Joe Sakic Celebrity Classic. This year’s tournament, presented by RE/MAX, LLC is sold out. Nestled amidst pine trees, rolling hills and rock outcroppings, Sanctuary is arguably one of the most beautiful courses in the country. Dave and Gail Liniger, co-founders of RE/MAX, LLC, created Sanctuary on a wildlife refuge for the exclusive use of selected charities and invited guests. Golf Digest and Golfweek rate Sanctuary among the top golf courses in the United States. More importantly, in Sanctuary’s 18-year history, charity golf tournaments have raise millions of dollars for important causes like Food Bank of the Rockies.
Friday evening, August 21, the Sakics will host The Joe and Debbie Sakic Bringing Hope to the Table Dinner, presented by CoBank and RBC Wealth Management. This entertaining evening of dining, comedy and high-end auction items will take place at the Hyatt Denver Tech Center. The event kicks off with a cocktail reception at 6:00 pm, followed by dinner and the comedy stylings of Juston McKinney. Marc Moser of the Altitude Radio Network will emcee the evening’s festivities. All proceeds from both events benefit Food Bank of the Rockies’ children’s programs.
Food Bank of the Rockies has been feeding the hungry in Metro Denver and Northern Colorado since 1978. Working with more than 600 hunger relief partners and providing meals through direct service programs, the food bank distributed nearly 44 million meals last year to men, women and children struggling to find their next meal. Sadly, children make up nearly half the clients served through the food bank and its partners. Because the Sakics continue to work toward ending childhood hunger in Colorado, Food Bank of the Rockies is able to provide hot meals, snacks and weekend totes to make sure these children don’t go hungry. You can help. Join Joe and Debbie this August to fight hunger, feed hope and have a great time in the process.
To learn more and to register, go to the events page at www.foodbankrockies.org, or call 303.375.5838.
