LYNN — The Lynn Veterans Council is raising money for next year’s North Shore Veterans and First Responders Day Parade, which will take place Sunday, Sept. 20 at 1 p.m.
The Council’s goal is to raise $100,000 and it has already crossed the halfway point. It hosted a “Salute to Service” scramble golf tournament at Gannon Municipal Golf Course Wednesday to help boost fundraising efforts.
There were plenty of raffle prizes up for grabs, including a putter, Boston Bruins’ and New England Patriots’ tickets, and the biggest prize — a trip to Aruba.
Veterans Parade Chairman David Solimine Sr. said he was pleased with the turnout, and happy to see the launch of what he hopes becomes an annual event.
“The turnout was very good. We’re excited that this is the first tournament we’re running,” Solimine said.
He also expressed pride in the parade’s expanded focus, which now includes first responders.
“I’m honored to be the chairman of the parade because I worked on the last parade that we had in the City. Now, it includes the first responders and not just the veterans,” he said. “The police, fire department, and ambulance — all of these people are covered. It’s an honor to honor them.”
Lynn Veterans Council President Wayne Johnson believes this is just the beginning.
“This is the first year we’re doing it (golf tournament) and we’re going to continue to do it year after year,” Johnson said. “Hopefully, as time goes on and word gets out, we’ll get more and more people.”
Johnson credited the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce and local businesses for their generosity.
“We got a lot of support from the community. Through the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce, they’ve sent out a bunch of emails to businesses in Lynn,” Johnson said. “We got a lot of donations from businesses in Lynn. The veteran organizations helped out. We had a couple of veteran teams playing today, a Marine Corps team, and a Navy recruiting team supporting us.”
Johnson also credited associate member Mark King for proposing the golf tournament idea.
“Mark King, who’s an associate member, whose father is an army veteran, was the one who brought this idea up. He’s also a member at Gannon,” Johnson said. “When he told us, we thought it would be a good idea. We hope to continue to keep it going.”
Solimine said the event was a meaningful way to support a cause close to his heart.
“It’s a joy to be working on something to thank all of those people who are giving their time, effort, and their lives in a lot of cases to protect us,” he said. “There are special people out there who are helping.”
The winning team, representing St. Mary’s, featured Micah Hashikawa, Bobby MacAulay, Wesley Georges and Lucas Downey, who shot 14-under par. Finishing in second place were Dean Babine, Jim Lukegord, Andrew Madison and Brian Misuraca. The third-place team included John Phillips, Chad Labrie, Tyler Salois and Charlie Bassett.
