Basket of Hope 23rd Annual Golf Tournament

Thank you for your support!

Thank you for supporting our 23rd Annual Basket of Hope Golf Tournament! We prayed diligently for no rain, and God totally listened! We are so grateful! Your support will allow us to continue in our mission of serving families with seriously ill children in the St. Louis area and beyond through the personal delivery of a Basket of Hope filled with age appropriate games, toys, craft items and educational materials. Parents are offered a Basket of Hope Tote filled with items to nourish them physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. Through our Beyond the Basket program we work with hospital social workers to provide meals for families during their hospital stay, invite families with seriously ill children to our "Basket of Hope Free Store" to shop through donated furniture, home goods, and more!  We could not do this without your support!  

On Friday, June 25th we had 144 golfers, 8 of which golfed in the morning. For next year, we may have a morning and an afternoon tee-time to accommodate more golfers! If you'd like for us to save you a spot, please let us know your preferred tee-off time. Our tentative date is Friday, June 24th, 2022 at Far Oaks Golf Club.

We would like to congratulate this year's 23rd Annual Basket of Hope Golf Tournament Winners!

 
A Flight

1st - Team Holtgrieve

2nd - Team Cooling Concepts

3rd - Team Narup

B Flight

1st - Team Ohlendorf

2nd - Team Enterprise Bank & Trust

3rd - Team Omnia Group

 
C Flight

1st - Team Mark Azar

2nd - Team Pizzolato

Closest to the Pin #16 - Dave Mills & Megan McDaniel

Longest Drive #9 - Dustin Duncan & Molly Knoll

Special thank you to all of our volunteers and sponsors! Gardens of Grace, Ronnoco Coffee, Anders CPAs + Advisors, City Lighting Products, RJP Electric, Cooling Concepts, Carrollton Bank, Meyer Group, James & Michele Graser, Steve Pizzolato, GRIP Tools, R&K Excavation, Columbia Threadneedle, Pasta House, Wilson Family Dental, Artigem, Gus' Pretzels, Jacob & Laura Hong, Peel Wood Fired Pizza, Rick & Diane Holtz, Paul & Cher Grosse, Greg & Rita Diekemper, and many more!

Sponsor a Basket of Hope for $100 in Memory of 2 Year Old Pierson, who passed away recently. He was a Basket of Hope Recipient and our 2020 Spokesperson

Dear Supporters,

I am sorry we cannot be at the golf tournament in person this year, but I wanted to share Andrew's and my story with you and let you know how much your support meant to Andrew and me.

 2020 was a horrible year for me personally.  I work for a large local travel company that was negatively impacted by Covid-19.  I am in management and throughout the spring and summer I watched my whole team get furloughed and at the same time worried constantly as to whether my job would be next.  I did survive the furloughs and layoffs, but it came at a price of a salary cut, more work and trying to figure out how to keep the bills paid with less wages.  The anxiety at some points was unbearable. 

In November of 2020, just before Thanksgiving, Andrew came to me and said there was ping pong sized knot on his neck.  We visited the pediatrician who prescribed antibiotics and sent us to an ENT.  The ENT then prescribed another round of antibiotics, steroids, and a CT scan with contrast.

January 6,2021 was the follow-up appointment to the CT scan and the ENT advised that the scan was suspicious of lymphoma.  Well, I am sure you all can guess how Andrew and I felt.  We were in shock.  Andrew, literally, has been the healthiest kid for 18 years.  Some years Andrew never had a cold.  Andrew was the kid that was always big and healthy.  Above average on the growth charts. 

January 8, 2021 the ENT was able to rush a biopsy surgery into her schedule and the hospital schedule.  This is also the day that an angel touched down and lead us to the Costas Center at Cardinal Glennon.

January 13, 2021, we met the doctor and the team at the Costas Center, but the news was not good.  Andrew was diagnosed with stage 2b Hodgkin's Lymphoma.

January 22, 2021 was the date of the port surgery and then January 23, 2021 chemotherapy started.  Ugh.  It was horrible.

Andrew's chemotherapy treatment was 5, 21-day cycles (105 days).  Days 1-3 were in hospital chemotherapy days and days 8 were outpatient chemo days.  The inpatient chemo made Andrew so sick that he was knocked out most of the time.  The day 8 chemo would cause Andrew's mouth, tongue, and throat so sore that he could barely eat.

The 2nd treatment was radiation.  It started on May 27 and ended June 17.

I am happy to announce that all treatment has ended, Andrew was able to attend high school graduation and prom!!  The BEST part is that the tumors (some in his chest were larger than his heart) have disappeared from the scans!!

Here is where you all come in? One day this past February, while Andrew was in the hospital, a huge basket and shopping bag were delivered.  They were filled with wonderful and fun items for both of us!  The smiles on Andrew's and my face were priceless.  For me the best part was the feeling of my heart overflowing with love knowing that there are people out there, who do not know us, supporting us!  All your support is TRULY appreciated!! 

I am so grateful to Baskets of Hope and all of you for supporting and loving us through this bump in the road.

Erin, Basket of Hope Recipient Mother