in f o c u s by Gar th Bishop Photos courtesy of the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday
Giving on the Green
Athletics-focused charitable foundation joins hospital as Memorial Tournament beneficiary
Thanks to a partnership with a brand-new beneficiary, the 2022 Memorial Tournament’s charitable arm will be bringing food, athletics and educational opportunities to local children in need. The tournament, which takes place May 30-June 5 at the Muirfield Village Golf Club, will now make charitable contributions to Eat. Learn. Play., a foundation established in 2019 by NBA star Stephen Curry and his entrepreneur/ author wife, Ayesha. Since its inception in 1976, the Memorial Tournament has designated Nationwide Children’s Hospital as its charitable beneficiary, raising over $25 million for the hospital in that time. Nationwide Children’s will continue to benefit in 2022 and beyond, but the tournament will now direct additional charitable proceeds to Eat. Learn. Play. 16 • April/May 2022
The proceeds going to Eat. Learn. Play. are in addition to the tournament’s previous charitable giving. Nationwide Children’s will not receive any less money than it has in years past. The additional beneficiary comes thanks to an agreement with a new presenting sponsor, finance and human resources enterprise software company Workday. That partnership will last for 10 years. Nationwide had previously served as presenting sponsor since 2011.
Workday has had a relationship with Eat. Learn. Play. since its formation, so it only made sense for the company to make the foundation part of its involvement in the tournament. “(Workday has) also integrated Eat. Learn. Play. into their participation in PGA Tour events and at conferences they sponsor throughout the country,” says the foundation’s CEO and President Chris Helfrich. “And their great team of employees are regular volunteers at Eat. Learn. Play. events in the community.” As its name suggests, Eat. Learn. Play. focuses its efforts for children on three specific areas: • Providing meals to combat food insecurity • Promoting reading to close literacy gaps • Improving access to and understanding of sports, offering opportunities for exercise and recreation “We believe that physical activity, including participation in youth sports and having access to safe places to play and be active, is a critical part of childhood development and offers numerous physical, mental, social-emotional and academic benefits to young people,” Helfrich says. “The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday gives us a unique platform to
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