OHL Alumni Golf Classic Raises $15,000 for Woolley's Warriors and Diabetes Canada
August 22, 2024 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL) News Release
Toronto, ON - The Ontario Hockey League is proud to announce that Tuesday's OHL Alumni Golf Classic at Hockley Valley Resort raised $15,000 for former Owen Sound Attack and Guelph Storm defenceman Mark Woolley and his Woolley's Warriors initiative. The funds will go to Diabetes Canada, providing children living with Type 1 diabetes with the opportunity to attend Diabetes Canada D-Camps. These camps have provided more than 20,000 children over a 60-year span with an opportunity to be in a supportive and fun environment filled with others also living with Type 1.
"Thank you to everyone involved with this year's event. I'm beyond grateful to have been given this opportunity to attend and be so supported," said Woolley. "The OHL provided me with an amazing five-year experience where I was able to mature as not only a hockey player but as a person and I will forever be grateful for those years. For them to continue to support their alumni through events like this and many others just goes to show how much they truly care about their players and the long-term success of all their athletes as people beyond the game."
The annual event featured a number of past OHL players along with representation from teams across the league on a cool, clear mid-August afternoon in Mono, Ontario, located just northeast of Orangeville. Participants were provided lunch and dinner along with the opportunity to bid on a range of different raffle prizes generating proceeds for Woolley's cause.
"It's incredible to see the OHL community come together to support one of their own," said Bryan Crawford, who began his tenure as OHL Commissioner earlier this month. "It was great getting to meet so many alumni and representatives from teams across the league here to support Mark Woolley and the tremendous work he is doing in support of children with Type 1 diabetes. Hockley Valley Resort is such an accommodating host for this event that we look forward to every summer."
Woolley, who played four OHL seasons from 2017-22, started the Woolley's Warriors program in August 2019 and has raised more than $89,000 since its inception. Now patrolling the blueline for the St. Francis Xavier University X-Men men's hockey program, Woolley has lived with Type 1 diabetes since the age of 12 and finds tremendous fulfilment in seeing young children with the condition be provided these special opportunities.
"The money raised from this event and all funds donated to Woolley's Warriors will have such a positive impact on the youth diabetic community," said Woolley. "The camps this money will support will provide youth diabetics with a great opportunity to build confidence while also learning from others just like them - all while being afforded a sense of normalcy and a chance to feel comfortable to fully understand and accept diabetes as a part of who they are.
"I'm glad that I have been able to use my platform while in the OHL and beyond to be able to raise funds and awareness for those living with Type 1 diabetes," he added. "I am hoping to continue Woolley's Warriors to make a lasting impact for as long as a I can, knowing that getting to this point wouldn't have been possible without the support of so many in the OHL community and beyond."
Woolley will soon turn his attention to preparing for his third season at StFX while OHL training camps are set to open in the coming week, with the preseason schedule getting underway on Friday, August 30.
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