By Tina Comeau
THE VANGUARD
Those who turned out for a golf tournament in Clare over the weekend were there to ‘play a round for Ron,’ said one of the committee members involved with the event.
Ron being Ron Aymar, a local Clare resident who has also been the general manager of the Clare Golf Club. Aymar suffers from ALS and as a result has to retire from his position.
But he’s doing so with a lot of support.
Ninety-four teams took part in the tournament, which was also part of a benefit effort to raise money for Aymar. As of Monday morning, Sept. 8, the total raised through the tournament and benefit was at around $95,000 with donations still coming in. People can still make donations at the pro shop of the Clare Golf Club and credit union branches were also accepting donations.
Because so many teams took part in the golf tournament, the tournament saw a double draw on Saturday – one in the morning, one in the afternoon – and around 20 teams even played on Friday. One team even played on Sunday.
“There’s a lot of teams from the community, but they’re coming from all over the province,” said Marcel Cottreau, one of the event organizers. Asked if he was surprised by the outpouring of support, Cottreau said obviously they were hoping for a large turnout, but given how much people like and care for Aymar he also wasn’t surprised.
“We were hoping to fill one draw, but it just blossomed into a tremendous support,” he said.
“Ron Aymar worked here for 25 years so this event is also a recognition for Ron,” Cottreau explained in an interview prior to the tournament. “He’s forced to retire, he can’t continue to work, he feels weak and he’s getting weaker. But this will also be a celebration of his years of service.”
A presentation was made to Aymar on Saturday evening in recognition of his years of contribution to the golf course.
Raymond Tufts, who chaired the committee that organized the event, says Aymar spoke from the heart that evening, speaking about how appreciative he was for the support of his community, family and friends, moving many to tears.
Tufts, like Cottreau, was so pleased with the outpouring of support by everyone who turned out. Silent auction items sold for well over what they worth and people kept handing over donations throughout the day and evening.
Beyond supporting and recognizing Aymar through the tournament, the event also helped to raise awareness about ALS.
“This raises awareness of the illness,” Cottreau said, noting the recent highly successful, and viral, ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has also brought a lot of attention to the disease. Several ice bucket challenges were held during the tournament, including one by the Aymar family.
ALS – also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, named after the Yankees baseball player – is a progressive neuromuscular disease in which nerve cells die and leave voluntary muscles paralyzed.
According to the ALS Society of Canada, people living with the disease become progressively paralyzed due to degeneration of the upper and lower motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Eighty per cent of people with ALS die within two to five years of diagnosis, as they are unable to breathe or swallow. Ten per cent of those affected may live for 10 years or longer. ALS has no known cure or effective treatment yet, the society says. This is why continued research into the disease is so important.
Beyond the day of the golf tournament, there had been a benefit campaign going on for a few weeks so people could make donations to support Aymar. Again, the support had been tremendous.
On Saturday there were musicians jamming at the Knights of Columbus – the Aymars are known to be a musical family – which was also a drop-off area for anyone still wanted to make donations.
For their part, on Facebook Ron Aymar and his family said following the day that they are overwhelmed by the support received and would never be able to properly thank everyone. They sent out a heartfelt “Merci.”
By Tina Comeau
THE VANGUARD
Those who turned out for a golf tournament in Clare over the weekend were there to ‘play a round for Ron,’ said one of the committee members involved with the event.
Ron being Ron Aymar, a local Clare resident who has also been the general manager of the Clare Golf Club. Aymar suffers from ALS and as a result has to retire from his position.
But he’s doing so with a lot of support.
Ninety-four teams took part in the tournament, which was also part of a benefit effort to raise money for Aymar. As of Monday morning, Sept. 8, the total raised through the tournament and benefit was at around $95,000 with donations still coming in. People can still make donations at the pro shop of the Clare Golf Club and credit union branches were also accepting donations.
Because so many teams took part in the golf tournament, the tournament saw a double draw on Saturday – one in the morning, one in the afternoon – and around 20 teams even played on Friday. One team even played on Sunday.
“There’s a lot of teams from the community, but they’re coming from all over the province,” said Marcel Cottreau, one of the event organizers. Asked if he was surprised by the outpouring of support, Cottreau said obviously they were hoping for a large turnout, but given how much people like and care for Aymar he also wasn’t surprised.
“We were hoping to fill one draw, but it just blossomed into a tremendous support,” he said.
“Ron Aymar worked here for 25 years so this event is also a recognition for Ron,” Cottreau explained in an interview prior to the tournament. “He’s forced to retire, he can’t continue to work, he feels weak and he’s getting weaker. But this will also be a celebration of his years of service.”
A presentation was made to Aymar on Saturday evening in recognition of his years of contribution to the golf course.
Raymond Tufts, who chaired the committee that organized the event, says Aymar spoke from the heart that evening, speaking about how appreciative he was for the support of his community, family and friends, moving many to tears.
Tufts, like Cottreau, was so pleased with the outpouring of support by everyone who turned out. Silent auction items sold for well over what they worth and people kept handing over donations throughout the day and evening.
Beyond supporting and recognizing Aymar through the tournament, the event also helped to raise awareness about ALS.
“This raises awareness of the illness,” Cottreau said, noting the recent highly successful, and viral, ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has also brought a lot of attention to the disease. Several ice bucket challenges were held during the tournament, including one by the Aymar family.
ALS – also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, named after the Yankees baseball player – is a progressive neuromuscular disease in which nerve cells die and leave voluntary muscles paralyzed.
According to the ALS Society of Canada, people living with the disease become progressively paralyzed due to degeneration of the upper and lower motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Eighty per cent of people with ALS die within two to five years of diagnosis, as they are unable to breathe or swallow. Ten per cent of those affected may live for 10 years or longer. ALS has no known cure or effective treatment yet, the society says. This is why continued research into the disease is so important.
Beyond the day of the golf tournament, there had been a benefit campaign going on for a few weeks so people could make donations to support Aymar. Again, the support had been tremendous.
On Saturday there were musicians jamming at the Knights of Columbus – the Aymars are known to be a musical family – which was also a drop-off area for anyone still wanted to make donations.
For their part, on Facebook Ron Aymar and his family said following the day that they are overwhelmed by the support received and would never be able to properly thank everyone. They sent out a heartfelt “Merci.”
