GOLFING FOR A GREAT CAUSE

Tournament At Madison Green Raises Money For The Nicklaus Children’s Hospital

BY MIKE MAY

When good people get together at a great venue at a great time of the year to work in support of a great cause, great things happen. That was shown once again late last year when the third annual Sloane Staffing Charity Golf Tournament was held at the Madison Green Country Club in Royal Palm Beach as a benefit for the Golden Cub Ambassador’s Club, which supports the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital through the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation. It all started several years ago with the husband-and-wife team of Max and Lindsey Spanier, who have been the driving force behind some significant local fundraising efforts. During business hours, the Spaniers are the owners of Palm Beach Gardens-based Sloane Staffing, one of the nation’s leading marketing technology and demand generation recruitment agencies. Outside of business hours, they spend their time and energy helping others, including their work with the Golden Cub Ambassador’s Club.

Like so many other successful small business owners, the Spaniers felt a need to give back to the local community. It all started with a bake sale in early 2020, which raised $1,500 and was matched by Jersey Mike’s. That money was used to buy sandwiches for healthcare workers at Jupiter Medical Center and Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center.

“I thought we did fairly well for a first-time bake sale,” Lindsey Spanier said. “But we wanted and needed to do more.”

The momentum of that successful bake sale evolved into a charity golf tournament.

“My husband loves to play golf, and he thought that it would be a really great idea to raise more money through a charity golf tournament,” Spanier explained. “I knew very little about golf, but I knew that golf tournaments can raise a great deal of money for charities.”

The annual Sloane Staffing Charity Golf Tournament started in late 2020. This annual event has turned into an opportunity to raise funds for local charities, with the money being distributed to support programs and projects focused on the health and well-being of children and families.

In 2020 and 2021, the Spaniers conducted the tournaments at the PGA National Resort and Spa in Palm Beach Gardens, raising money for Place of Hope, which supports abused and neglected children. “We raised $25,000 for Place of Hope with those two tournaments,” Spanier said.

Then, on Dec. 2, 2022, the Spaniers conducted the third annual Sloane Staffing Charity Golf Tournament, but it was moved to the Madison Green Country Club in Royal Palm Beach.

With the assistance of many volunteers, a number of generous sponsors and a field of more than 100 golfers playing in this 18-hole scramble golf tournament, $18,000 was raised to support a new charity — the Golden Cub Ambassador’s Club supporting the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital. The successful event had some star appeal, as two of the golfers in the field were a pair of former NFL players — placekicker Cody Parkey and tight end Nick O’Leary, who is the grandson of Jack and Barbara Nicklaus.

Max and Lindsay Spanier are members of the Golden Cub Ambassador’s Club, and they are friends with the group’s co-chairs, Christie NicklausStrunk and her husband Todger Strunk. Christie is a granddaughter of Jack and Barbara Nicklaus. The aptly named club, since golf legend Jack Nicklaus is known as the Golden Bear, was formed for young adults ages 21 to 45 to support the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation.

The choice of the Golden Bear Ambassador’s Club and its affiliation with the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation has great personal meaning to the Spaniers. Raising awareness and money for the Golden Cub Ambassador’s Club is especially close to their hearts since their son, Max Jr., was born with heart defects and is currently a cardiology patient of the Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, where he will have heart surgery when he is three or four years old. Right now, he’s approaching 18 months old.

Despite the healthcare challenges facing young Max, doctors and the Span- iers are happy with his progress.

“We take Max to the local Nicklaus Children’s Palm Beach Gardens Urgent Care Center for check-ups every quarter, and he’s doing well,” Spanier said.

The next Sloane Staffing Golf Tournament won’t be held until the spring of 2024, and it will continue to be an opportunity to raise funds for local charities that support programs and projects focused on the health and well-being of children and families.

Learn more about the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation at www. nchcf.org.