Jason Blaine Celebrity Charity Golf Classic returns to Pembroke
Over the last year and a half, Canadian country music star Jason Blaine has played more golf than music.
The Pembroke native hasn't returned home in more than two years due to the pandemic, but returned to the valley Wednesday to bring back his annual Jason Blaine Celebrity Charity Golf Classic.
"It was heartbreaking having to cancel our event last year," Blaine tells CTV News Ottawa. "I can't tell you how excited I am."
Being held at the Pembroke Golf Club, this year is the seventh instalment of the fundraiser, which normally takes place over a two-day span. Blaine altered his usual plans in order to make sure his event didn't get called off for a second year.
"This is a one-day event this year, golf and music all in one shot," said Blaine. "We got one day to get it right, and thank God the weather is beautiful, and everybody came out and stuck with us. So I'm just so thankful."
This year's event featured a golf tournament in the afternoon followed by an evening concert by Blaine himself, who also brought along Canadian country artists Aaron Pritchett, River Town Saints, Kelly Prescott, Elyse Saunders, and Brian John Harwood.
"I think it's great for the community to have that sort of moral booster, and especially given what's happened over the last year and a half plus," said Pritchett, who was auctioned off to join a golf team along with Blaine to raise money. "I'm just happy to be a part of it all."
"We've been very fortunate to do just over $500,000 over six years of having this event," said Blaine. "I don't know what my expectations are tonight. I just really want to have a great event, and hopefully we raise a decent amount of money for the charities we support here in town."
One of those organizations who has benefitted from the golf classic over a number of years is BGC Pembroke.
"What a gift Jason is to the community. Not only to Pembroke and area but throughout the valley, he's a very generous and giving person," says Rhodina Turner, the executive director at BGC Pembroke. Turner adds that the event returning this year provides a huge boost to their programming, which relies heavily on donations.
"We have a music program, the Jason Blaine music program," says Turner. "We have guitar lessons, piano lessons. The last four years he has donated $25,000 to BGC Pembroke and like I said, we've been very fortunate to be one of the benefactors."
Despite being auctioned off for four figures each, the artists know where they shine most is on the stage rather than the course.
"Well, I say my handicap is actually my swing," laughed Pritchett. "I think it's more about the hang, I just love hanging out and having fun with people."
"I've actually had nothing but time to golf in the past year and a half," added Blaine. "And I have been trying to improve my game, so I'll be embarrassed if it's not a little bit better than it was two years ago."
UPDATE: The 2021 Jason Blaine Celebrity Charity Golf Classic raised over $87,000 for local charitable initiatives.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
Toxic testing standoff: Family leaves house over air quality
A Sherwood Park family says their new house is uninhabitable. The McNaughton's say they were forced to leave the house after living there for only a week because contaminants inside made it difficult to breathe.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
B.C. seeks ban on public drug use, dialing back decriminalization
The B.C. NDP has asked the federal government to recriminalize public drug use, marking a major shift in the province's approach to addressing the deadly overdose crisis.
OPP responds to apparent video of officer supporting anti-Trudeau government protestors
The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) says it's investigating an interaction between a uniformed officer and anti-Trudeau government protestors after a video circulated on social media.
An emergency slide falls off a Delta Air Lines plane, forcing pilots to return to JFK in New York
An emergency slide fell off a Delta Air Lines jetliner shortly after takeoff Friday from New York, and pilots who felt a vibration in the plane circled back to land safely at JFK Airport.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.