Bad weather may have forced the postponement of a charity golf day in memory of Sunderland fan, Kevin Outhwaite, but the spirit of the event organisers was not dampened and they have rescheduled the event for October.
Organised by his family and friends it would have been the 10th golf competition in Kevin’s memory held at Ramside Hall. The annual event raises money for the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation, the NHS cancer charity Kevin himself began fundraising for after he had undergone 18 months of cancer treatment.
It was his way of saying thank you for the hospital care he had received in both Durham and Newcastle.
Kevin, from Tunstall, was just 36 when he died from skin cancer in March 2010. A plumber with Gentoo, he was a huge Sunderland fan and followed the team home and away.
In 2008, he organised a dinner dance at The Roker Hotel and raised an incredible £13,644 in just one night – despite discovering a new cancerous lump in his neck as he planned the event – and afterwards he met Sir Bobby to present the cheque for the money raised.
At the time, Kevin said: “I was keen to do something which would show my appreciation of the care I received in hospital and also raise awareness of skin cancer. I thought fundraising for Sir Bobby was the best way to do it.
“He knows how hard this disease is and has approached it head on, not giving an inch. I’m proud to fundraise for his charity and I know that the money donated will make a real difference to cancer treatment in the future.”
In response, Sir Bobby said: “Kevin says he’s proud to help fundraise for my charity but really it’s me who’s proud that men like him are part of my team. To raise this substantial sum of money while coping with his own health issues is nothing short of remarkable.”
Kevin’s family and friends continue the fundraising Kevin began every year with the golf event in his memory.
The group came together at the Ramside, including Kevin’s father, John, brother, Ian, and nephews, Jake and Luke, to discuss their new fundraising plans and Lady Elsie joined them to thank them for their efforts.
Lady Elsie said: “It’s such a shame that the bad weather has forced this postponement. Although it was quite bright when we took some pictures outside the clubhouse, the rain has been so heavy that it’s just made the competition impossible.
“I know how much hard work Kevin’s family and friends put into this event every year and it’s greatly appreciated.
“Like my husband, Kevin was poorly when he began fundraising for our Foundation and that desire to help other people who will be in the same situation as you because of cancer is truly inspiring.
“I hope the weather for the rearranged event in October is much better and I’m sure it will be a great success.”
Sir Bobby Robson launched his Foundation as an NHS charity in 2008 and it has gone on to raise over £14 million.
Working in partnership with other leading charities and organisations, the work funded directly benefits cancer patients in the North East and Cumbria and plays a significant role in the international fight against the disease – funding cutting-edge cancer treatment and innovative cancer support services and including the clinical trials of new drugs at the Sir Bobby Robson Cancer Trials Research Centre.
Kevin’s brother, Ian Outhwaite, said: “There’s a group of lads and lasses who put their heart and soul into organising and running this event every year. It’s really special to us as a family and we know Kevin would be happy that we’ve carried on what he started.
“He was very proud of his fundraising for the Foundation and I remember the day he met Sir Bobby at his house.
“He’d arranged to arrive at 11 o’clock and when he got there, at the exact moment he sat down with Sir Bobby, the hall clock chimed the hour. Sir Bobby said to him, ‘Well you’re definitely punctual, Kevin.’ Kev thought that was very funny.
“The work the Foundation funds gives people hope and that’s really important. One of the lads here today lost his brother-in-law to cancer just two weeks ago. He’d been a patient in the Sir Bobby Cancer Centre and without that treatment he had no other options. It didn’t work for him but it might for someone else and we have to keep trying.”
John Outhwaite, Kevin’s dad, said: “Kevin was such a popular lad. All these years later and I still get people coming up to me in the street and saying how much he meant to them. I think the popularity of this golf day shows that.
“There are so many reminders of Kevin everywhere. My grandson, Jake, has a real look of his Uncle Kevin. But we try not to be sad when we think of him. We always want to do something positive in his memory.”
As a fund within the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Charity, it does not employ professional fundraisers to proactively raise money, and relies completely on third party, volunteer fundraisers and the incredible generosity of the general public.
The rearranged Kevin Outhwaite Golf Day will now be held at Ramside Hall on Friday 23 October. For further details, please email Andrew Oliver on [email protected].
Sir Bobby described his charity as his “last and greatest team.” He had no idea how large his team would grow, or how much it would go on to achieve.
Working within the NHS, the Foundation’s aim is to find more effective ways to detect and treat cancer and it does that by working in partnership with other leading charities and organisations. Teamwork was always very important to Sir Bobby.
As a fund within the Newcastle Hospitals NHS Charity, it does not employ professional fundraisers to proactively raise money, and relies completely on third party, volunteer fundraisers and the incredible generosity of the general public.
Most recently, it made a contribution of £985,000 to fund COLO-SPEED, a region-wide bowel cancer research and treatment project, which involves 17 regional NHS endoscopy units – from Whitehaven to Sunderland, and Northallerton to Cramlington – and aims to recruit up to 5,000 patients a year to help speed up research into the disease.
It also recently funded The Sir Bobby Robson Foundation Clinical Trials Design Team, which helps answer important questions about cancer by ensuring research is designed in the best way possible.
Based at Newcastle University, the new team, funded by a £433,838 grant, works with cancer researchers – the clinicians and scientists known as ‘investigators’ – to design and develop new trials. The findings of these trials will not only benefit patients with cancer in this region, but also nationally and internationally.
For more information, please visit Sir Bobby Robson Foundation website.
