Sports

King Proud Charity Golf Challenge raises $20K for Easter Seals, Morning Youth Grants, and Lions Clubs

July 2, 2025   ·   0 Comments

By Jim Stewart

It was Shakespeare’s victorious Macbeth who uttered the famous words “So fair and foul a day I have not seen” as he peered over the misty battlefield – a civil war won in daunting conditions.
The Scottish King would have been right at home at Cardinal West at the King Proud Charity Golf Challenge on Thursday.
With Piper Katherine McManus atop misty Cardinal West, one could imagine playing an ancestor’s home course at the base of The Highlands. McManus called the assembly to order with a stirring version of “Scotland the Brave” and piped the intrepid players on to the course to take their places at the eighteen Scramble Shotgun tee blocks.
Some sideways rain – perhaps reminiscent of the Minister’s scene in Caddyshack – in no way dampened the collective spirit of the 128 golfers. Our foursome, comprised of Olympic skier Brian Stemmle, Stanley Cup-winning Coach Mike Kitchen, and Aurora resident Rob Gaby, positioned our quartet of umbrellas over the adjacent carts and created a makeshift shelter to rebuff the aqueous elements. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. When the skies cleared at the white-arched pergola between the first green and second tee block, we resumed our hunt for birdies and eagles. Our group finished with a respectable -4 and lipped out five birdie putts. As Hamlet muttered in similar circumstances, “Fie on it.”
Most importantly, the 2025 King Proud Charity Golf Challenge produced a multiplicity of winners.
The tournament itself was won by a family foursome comprised of Mark Teskey, his sons Kevin and Sean, and Brayden Jones. The affable Tesley patriarch praised the tournament and its familiar setting: “The guys grew up on the course. They learned to play the game at Kettle Creek. We enjoyed so many Mothers Day brunches here in the Clubhouse over the years.”
The Teskey-Jones juggernaut shot an outstanding -15 in the drizzly conditions, including an Eagle putt on the Par 5 13th that Mark Teskey drained from 16 feet to cap off a great scoring day at Cardinal West Wing.
Even more importantly than the scores and camaraderie on the links and in the clubhouse was the outstanding fundraising that King Proud Charity Golf Challenge generated.
Its chief organizer – Kettleby’s Brent Morning – expressed his gratitude after the event: “I’m overwhelmed – people travelled long distances to come and support the fundraising we do. We had 128 registered and all spots were filled, even with the rain. I want to congratulate everybody and thank our lunch sponsors – Priestly Demolition Inc., The Country Look Beauty Salon, Edward Jones: Rob Payne, Green Tractors of Nobleton, HosPall Homecare, Kingdale Animal Hospital, James Morning and Sons Ltd–and all our sponsors who made this day possible.”
The Tournament Chairman also praised the efforts of the event’s volunteers: “I’m so happy with the great work of the volunteers. I’m very humbled. Sometimes I have to step up to get things done, but I wanted to offer a very special thank you to Kathy Roach, Susan Sheppard, and Meline Beach. I had some very close friends around the table with me tonight and everybody worked together. I do this to help the young entrepreneurs, kids who’d like to go to camp, and our community service groups. We’re not finished our final calculations, but we’ve raised upwards of $20,000.”
Morning’s poignant speech at the event ranged from self-effacing humor – “Before I took golf lessons courtesy of Al Balding, they asked me what my handicap was” after which he paused expertly for his audience’s amused reaction. Morning broke down when discussing his connection to James Morning and his dad’s decades of service to the Township – “My dad served on Council for 20 years …” before his voice tailed off. Morning acknowledged his physical challenges caused by cerebral palsy – “I am an Easter Seal Kid through and through – not by choice, but I wanted to thank the crowd here today for your incredible support.” In a moment of closing joy, Morning asked “Who’s coming back next year?” to which an appreciative and loud ovation served as response to the organizer’s invitation.
Morning’s friend since Grade 2 and Canadian Olympic skier Brian Stemmle, served as Master of Ceremonies. Stemmle, who has emceed the event since 2014, moved the reception along masterfully. Sprinkled in between auctions of Schomberg-raised Mike Kitchen’s #26 Colorado Rockies jersey, a Maple Leafs prize package, and a Bobby Orr-signed framed photo of his 1970 Cup-winning goal, and introducing a raft of 30 silent auction items, Stemmle chatted about his connection to Morning, the event, and the golf course: “Since Grade 4, I’ve been a friend with Brent Morning – ever since I moved to Kettleby from King City. Over the years, Brent has raised over $140,000 and it’s an honor to serve as the tournament’s emcee.”
Stemmle described his professional aspiration “to be a Crazy Canuck” on the ski slopes and was visibly taken by the moment when described his connection to the landscape of the Cardinal East and West courses: “I have tons of memories here. Literally, this was our backyard and it’s so nice to be back.”
Stemmle introduced Kevin Collins, President of Easter Seals Ontario, who offered inspirational words for the attendees: “Never let anybody tell you that you cannot achieve your goals. For over 103 years, we’ve provided financial support for kids with disabilities so they can attend summer camps and earn university scholarships. None of this would be possible without people like Brent Morning. We truly appreciate everything you do.”
After Collins’s warm words on a damp day, Stemmle asked Rob Payne to speak on behalf of the Lions Clubs of King City, Nobleton, and Schomberg. Payne praised the Tournament Chairman: “We look up to Brent for all his fundraising and we thank you today for all the things you’ve done for King Township. Thanks to all of you for being a part of this great event. A final shout out to Brent Morning – he’s an inspiration to our community.”
Prior to the reception, King Chamber of Commerce President Michelle Frauley, who won the Closest to the Pin contest, discussed one of the prime reasons for the event: “We’re here to support King Proud – created by Brent and the Chamber – to honor his father who was a long-time councillor. In honor of Brent’s dad, we’ll give seven kids (13-17 years old) annual scholarships of $500 each to showcase and support their entrepreneurial skills. It’s all about embracing entrepreneurship. The winners will be announced July 7.”
Joe Tilley, legendary sportscaster for CFTO and in his fifth year of hosting Joe Tilley’s Great Canadian Sports Show podcast, applauded the Charity Golf Challenge’s goals, the good times he had on the links, and posited reasons for supporting the tourney: “It was little wet out there, but I played with some amazing guys and had so much fun. Brent is very persuasive and I am always happy to help out with the event. Brent’s been on my podcast with Mike Kitchen. We’ve been able to promote it for Easter Seals. Brent’s been on such an impressive journey and I was happy to tell his story. Discussing the Charity Golf Challenge fills the need for local stories and we’ve been able to produce 235 segments to tell those stories. Since local TV sports is done, we need to tell these kinds of stories that take place in our own backyard.”
In King Township’s backyard at Highways 400 and 9, Cardinal’s penchant for hospitality was on display on Thursday. The reception in the cozy clubhouse featured a selection of delicious BBQ items complemented by an array of salads. The entrees were followed by a range of decadent dessert selections–a sweet finish to a day spent golfing and raising funds for three worthy causes: Easter Seals Ontario to send kids with physical disabilities to summer camps, the King Chamber of Commerce’s Morning Youth Grants, and the selfless work of King Township’s Lions Clubs.

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