Glen Cove tees off to help senior center

The sun was shining and the wind provided a nice breeze on the afternoon of June 3, making for a perfect day for the Glen Cove SAGE Foundation’s annual golf outing.

Established in 2005, SAGE —Senior Activity Generational Endowment — is a volunteer-based, nonprofit organization that provides funding exclusively to the Glen Cove Senior Center.

Money raised by SAGE goes toward funding the center’s events, as well as the hiring of outside entities to provide services to the seniors. For example, the center is able to hire social workers to come in and provide counseling and case management for the seniors, helping them to maintain their mental health and wellbeing, which may not have been possible without SAGE. Because of this, said Carol Waldman, the center’s executive director, SAGE plays a crucial part in the seniors’ lives.

While SAGE functions year-round and is always accepting donations and helping the senior center, the annual golf outing is its signature event.

“It’s got a warmth to it and a spirit that you don’t see in a lot of golf tournaments,” Waldman said. “There are many charities that do what they do and it’s so worthwhile to support them, but when the seniors come out . . . and we root them on when they go out, it just kinda makes it a little bit special. It’s like we’re all part of the same family.”

Golfers took to their carts around noon as the course’s head golf professional Bob Arrowood spoke to them about the rules. Players then went out in teams of four, and each player teed off at the beginning of every hole. They would then go to the farthest shot of the four and hit from there, continuing this process until one of their balls landed into the hole. This enabled each team to come away with a cumulative score instead of four separate ones.

Arrowood said he loves hosting the outing for a variety of reasons, but mostly because of the people it benefits. “It’s [for] a good cause,” he explained. “We’re all headed toward older age, so it’s nice to know that things are gonna happen that can help us out.”

There were nearly 30 volunteers at the outing, many of whom are part of the senior center themselves. Several of the volunteers said it not only gives them something to do, but also a way to help sustain the center, which they love so much. “It’s special because you’re not only doing something for yourself, but for other people,” said Jean Quartarolo, 89, who explained that the people at the senior center are like a second family.

Nearly 64 golfers hit the links. “The good thing is, we always get the same people who come every year; they like it too” said Linda Thompson, a former chairperson at SAGE who is still active in organizing the outing. “They like the outing and they like the senior center, so it’s great.”

Many of the golfers in attendance were not directly affiliated with SAGE or the senior center but wanted to come out in support of the city’s seniors. One of these golfers was Mayor Tim Tenke, who said he has a huge appreciation for everything that the center provides.

“For me, it’s one of the greatest joys of this golf tournament,” Waldman said, referring to the outside support. “People will see what we do and who we serve in a way that they would not otherwise. Here, everyone is connecting with one another, I love that the outside world feels very connected to our inside world and we’re really sharing a very special day.”

According to SAGE president Lee DelValle, roughly 120 people came to the dinner which followed the outing at the Metropolitan in Glen Cove. There, the winners were given cash prizes and a Chinese auction was held. The night concluded with a big raffle drawing, the winner of which received $1,000 in restaurant certificates.

Although Thompson said the foundation will not know exactly how much money was raised for a few weeks, she hopes to exceed last year’s total of $16,000.

DelValle said events such as this outing are part of what makes her so passionate about the city. “I could not be more proud of living here,” she said. “I love Glen Cove and the reason I love it is because this is a community where people clearly care about each other.”