Approximately 400 people attended Mike Bellotti’s 13th annual Ultimate Tailgate Party on Thursday and 56 teams competed in the
Golf Classic Friday to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
According to early estimates, the two-day event raised more than $100,000, and the final total is expected to be tallied today, said Nell Higginbotham, Eugene district director of the MuscularDystrophy Association.
Approximately $30,000 of the event’s final total was raised in the camper auction portion of the Ultimate Tailgate Party, which allowed bidders to sponsor and help send a child to one of the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s summer camps. The camp costs $600 per camper.
Part of Thursday’s highlights included three current players – Brady Leaf, J.D. Nelson and Brent Haberly – honoring three children with a courage award as part of the “football buddies” system that paired the players with children coping with the disease.
“That was really special,”
Higginbotham said of the awards. “The boys had no idea this was going to happen. It was a great surprise and made their evening.”