October 11, 2007

Golf tournament benefits kids with autism

Through their annual golf tournament at Cinnabar Hills on Sept. 27, Almaden’s Customer Service Realty (CSR) and the Autism Tree Project Foundation (ATPF) partnered for the fourth year to help create brighter futures for children with autism.

MMA legend Frank Shamrock hands the microphone to teen Joel Anderson, who educates people on what it's like to live with autism.

“Even though we met our goal of bringing in more than $60,000 this year for autism, the tournament was an incredible success in and of itself,” said CSR co-founder Dina Bonafede. “My phone was ringing off the hook the day after the tournament with people telling me it was the best tournament they’d ever attended. My husband Brian and brother-in-law Steve join me in thanking everyone involved for helping us make this great event possible”.

The Autism Tree Project Foundation was co-founded in 2003 by Almaden native Dayna Hoff and her husband Todd after their son Garret was diagnosed with autism. The goal of the foundation is to raise awareness and eventually find a cure for autism, with their core mission being that of early intervention.

“A new child is diagnosed with autism every 20 minutes and if you don’t know someone with autism now, you will” states Dayna Hoff. The Hoffs have seen firsthand that, if caught early enough, autism treatment and therapy can literally re-wire the brain. But early detection is crucial and screenings of preschoolers by trained professionals is essential to a successful outcome.

According to Hoff and the American Academy of Pediatrics, one out of every 150 children is diagnosed with autism. The California legislature has recently pledged to work with private agencies to address the explosion of autism in California. The ATPF initiated the early intervention strategy in 2005 to identify speech and developmental delays in preschoolers. The proceeds from previous tournaments have already gone to train teachers to identify potential developmental delays.

ATPF has teamed up with Dr. Jean Novak, the head of San Jose State University’s Language and Communicative Disorders Department to launch a preschool language-screening project in Silicon Valley. The project benefits children by encouraging early intervention and by preparing them to administer speech and language screenings for children.

S.J. Sharkie and Tristan from the Morgan Autism School.

According to Novak, who also attended the golf tournament, “The ATPF preschool screening and training program directly aligns with the university’s goals of having their students do real projects that impact the community and the city. The CSR golf tournament has directly funded training of 230 of my students, and the program is now university approved.”

The golf tournament fell on a spectacular day with perfect weather. It included a silent and live auction emceed by Almaden’s Rusty Karraker, S. J. Sharkie paid a visit and there were raffle prizes, tee prizes and a hole-in-one chance to win a Buick from John Moore Buick as well as a new Infinity from Peninsula Infinity. Internationally known Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) legend Frank Shamrock and his team performed MMA demonstrations, golfed and signed autographs. Teen Joel Anderson helped educate people on what it’s like to live with autism. Cash sponsors included Roche, Business Objects, Starbucks, Saaspoint and Old Republic Title.

“The tournament is awesome because it brings everyone together from all walks of life for a day of fun to benefit children in our community” says Dina Bonafede. “There’s nothing like giving of yourself to support a worthy cause like this one. There’s no other feeling like it.”

“The real winners of the day are the children of our South Bay community, added CSR CEO Dave Wendt. “With early detection and multidisciplinary treatment, these children will have the opportunity to become fully functioning adults.”