| TURF & SURF HORSERACING NIGHT RAISES OVER $60,000 FOR AIDS AWARENESS ORGANIZATION |
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In less than five hours just over $60,000 was raised to support the work of the Turks and Caicos AIDS Awareness Foundation (TCAAF) at the third annual “Turf and Surf” night sponsored by PriceWaterHouseCoopers and Beaches Resort & Spa. The proceeds from the evening will be put towards the new youth center being built in Providenciales and due to open this summer.
This annual “Turf & Surf” fundraiser combines charity and chance in an entertaining and unique venue that brings the panache of British horse racing to Turks & Caicos. Throughout the evening participants bet on horse races from premier tracks throughout the UK. The prerecorded races are shown on large screen TVs throughout the room and called live by Mr. Mark Johnson, an internationally renowned horseracing commentator.
“This event just keeps getting bigger and better,” said Honorable Galmo Williams, patron of the TCAAF and one of the 312 people who attended the fundraiser along with H. E. Governor Richard Tauwhare and his wife Amanda. “As the beneficiary, the TCAAF is extremely grateful to the organizers, sponsors and participants who make the night so successful.”
Nick Haywood presents TCAAF with proceeds from Turf and Surf 2008
More than $60,000 was raised from the event.
Funds raised from the evening will be put towards the TCAAF’s flagship project - the youth center in Providenciales. Establishing a youth center is such an important initiative of the TCAAF because studies show the youth are most at risk when it comes to HIV/AIDS and the biggest impact on fighting the disease is equipping young people with the tools, services and environment they need to make smart, healthy choices.
“I’m amazed at the amount of money that was raised and at how popular this event has become, both of which are testaments to the strength of the community here. I do several of these types events in other places and this by far is one of the most successful ones and for sure one I enjoy very much,” said Mark Johnson, the evening’s host and one of the people who devised the idea for the fundraiser. “Coming to Turks and Caicos is always a special treat for me, and combining that with the thrill of horse racing and the satisfaction of helping an important cause is just unbeatable.”
“The TCAAF is grateful to everyone who came out to support the event and especially to the sponsors and people like Mark along with Nick and Sarah Haywood who were instrumental in making it all happen,” said Toni Sottak, chairperson of the TCAAF. “In the fight against AIDS, community support is critical. We are so fortunate to live in a place with a strong, active community. The recent Digicel AIDS telethon raised huge amounts of money to support the National AIDS program. The money raised from that event was specifically designated for treatment. And now, once again the community came out in force to support the fight against AIDS with the proceeds from this event being put towards the other end of the spectrum – towards prevention and awareness.”
The Temple Group won the Turks and Caicos Derby and collected the silver cup tropy.
Throughout the evening guests were treated to some of the year’s best UK horse races. However, the last race of the evening – The Turks and Caicos Derby – was the most exciting as it gave top bidders the chance to own their own race horse. This year the bidding was especially zealous with one horse going for $10,000. The Win, Place and Show for this year’s derby were: “Passing Wind” owned by Temple Group, “Big Bill” owned by McCollum & Newlands and “Hooligan” owned by Projectech respectively. Winners received champagne, courtesy of The Wine Cellar, cell phones from Digicel and cash. Plus, the first place winner got to take home the silver cup trophy for a year.
In the spirit of the evening, some of the big winners donated their money back to the cause and others made donations after the event bringing the total amount raised to $60,412.50. Cumulatively, over the last three years, this single event has raised more than $120,000 for AIDS awareness and educational programs in Turks and Caicos.
Projectech comes in third in the Turks and Caicos Derby with its horse named Hooligan.
Instead of keeping the cash winnings they donated the money back to the TCAAF.
The headline sponsors of the evening were PricewaterhouseCoopers and Beaches Resort & Spa. In addition, support was provided by: Business Solutions which printing the race cards and brochures, The Wine Cellar and Digicel which donated prizes, The Security Center which provided escort security service, Publicise IT which did the race card typesetting, local businesses and members of the community who purchased tables, races and placed bets and the 28 volunteers who served as tote runners and worked out the win dividends.
About the TCAAF
The TCAAF is a non-profit organization that was founded in December of 2003 by a group of individuals who lost friends and/or family members to AIDS. The mission of the organization is to raise awareness and eliminate the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV and AIDS through education and community participation to affect positive lifestyle and behavioral changes. In addition, the TCAAF supports the efforts of the Turks and Caicos National AIDS Program and has recently broke ground on a new youth center that will be open to everyone in the community. The TCAAF relies on its membership fees for existence. Individual memberships are $100, corporate memberships are $500, please call 941-2222 for details. |
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