{"id":2716,"date":"2019-07-22T18:17:58","date_gmt":"2019-07-22T18:17:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/?p=2716"},"modified":"2019-07-26T14:53:17","modified_gmt":"2019-07-26T14:53:17","slug":"a-different-preview-of-the-fedex-st-jude-invitational","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/golf\/personalities\/2716\/a-different-preview-of-the-fedex-st-jude-invitational","title":{"rendered":"A different preview of the FedEx St. Jude Invitational"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Entrance<\/a>

Entrance to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital<\/p><\/div>\n

This was supposed to be a preview of the FedEx St. Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tenn. Now part of the elite World Golf Championship Series, the tournament\u2019s defending champion is Dustin Johnson who eagled the final hole last year and finished six shots ahead of Andrew Putnam. Being a Michigan scribe, I would have mentioned that Jackson\u2019s Dave Hill won four times in Memphis during his illustrious career\u20141967, \u201969, \u201970\u00a0 <\/span>and \u201973. At the time, Hill was dubbed the “King of Memphis,” with no apologies to Elvis.<\/p>\n

But after visiting St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital last February, this story is about that extraordinary hospital, known world-wide for its research and treatment of childhood cancers. And this story is how 30 years ago that hospital indelibly touched the lives of Grand Rapids natives Mike and Marge Bush and their young son Brian.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In 1983, Mike and Marge came face to face with a parent\u2019s worse fear: their child had cancer. A third grader at the time, Brian was experiencing frequent nausea and was taken to the family\u2019s physician who recommended further diagnosis at the local hospital. It was discovered Brian had Medulloblastoma, the most common malignant brain tumor in children.\u00a0Brian underwent surgery and the tumor was removed. To further combat any remaining cancer, radiation treatment followed next and the prospects for Brian\u2019s full recovery looked promising.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Statue<\/a>

Statue of St. Jude<\/p><\/div>\n

\u201cBrian was doing well and then five years later in 1988, when he was a high school freshman, the cancer came back,\u201d said Mike. The local Grand Rapids hospital\u2014St. Mary\u2019s\u2014following the recommendations of St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital, performed surgery again and sent the tumor to Stanford University Hospital for analysis. But after the malignancy insidiously reappeared again, Brian\u2019s doctors referred his case to St. Jude. At that time, the survival rate for Brian\u2019s type of cancer was less than 3%. The Bush family soon were in Memphis staring at the hospital\u2019s statue of St. Jude Thaddeus, the patron saint of hopeless causes.<\/p>\n

At this point in the story, the reader might sense a hopeful outcome for Brian. Sadly, it turned out otherwise. The cancer was too far along to make a difference despite the noble and valiant efforts of the doctors and nurses at St. Jude. \u201cThey did everything humanly possible,\u201d said Mike.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Michael<\/a>

Brian Bush<\/p><\/div>\n

With his family surrounding him with their loving presence and faith-filled prayers, and after receiving the sacrament of Holy Communion, Brian slipped into a coma. Without any prior contact by the family, three nuns from the order of Mother Theresa appeared outside Brian\u2019s door and asked if they could pray with the family. They stood at Brian\u2019s bed and recited a favorite prayer of Brian\u2019s and his fellow students during his brief time at Catholic Central High School.<\/p>\n

\u201cBrian died peacefully on April 1,1989 at St. Jude.\u00a0 <\/span>God called him home. It was a grace-filled yet wrenching experience,\u201d recalled Mike.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Medical expenses for Brian\u2019s months-long ordeal at St. Jude totaled over $100,000 but none of it was borne by the family. \u201cWe never knew when we got to St. Jude that everything was paid for. We discovered we were under the hospital\u2019s umbrella and its credo that \u2018families never receive a bill from St. Jude because all a family should worry about is helping their child live.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

As in the case of the late entertainer Danny Thomas, Mike and Marge found a mission and a path forward with St. Jude. \u201cAfter experiencing all the good that St. Jude does for children and their families, we knew we had to give back,\u201d said Mike.<\/p>\n

Although not as grandiose as a PGA Tour stop, a miniature golf event dedicated to St. Jude Children\u2019s Hospital and Brian\u2019s memory was started in August of 1989. \u201cWe raised $1,000 mainly because all the volunteers chipped in extra funds to reach that modest goal, but it was a start,\u201d said Mike.<\/p>\n

\"Putt-for-Life<\/a>

Putt-for-Life Miniature Golf Tournament<\/p><\/div>\n

Thirty years later, the Brian Bush Putt-for-Life has raised $727,800 for St. Jude. Last year, the event raised $40,575 and that\u2019s without a corporate sponsor so commonly found among charitable causes. Over 400 participants will turn out this year on July 27 for the friendly and festive gathering at Loeschner’s Village Green in Grandville, Mich. All the prizes and food will be donated as will the use of the facility thanks to the generosity of owner Mark Loeschner. Says Mike: \u201cWe are so blessed to have so many supporters who love to raise money for St. Jude. For many, it\u2019s a ministry and a part of their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

And their efforts are making a difference for over 7,500 children and their families battling cancer each year at St. Jude. Mike and Marge report that Brian\u2019s cancer\u2014 Medulloblastoma\u2014now has a treatable success rate of 85%. Part of this remarkable success is due to St. Jude being home to the world\u2019s first proton therapy center solely for children. Unlike the rigorous and invasive brain surgery endured by Brian, proton therapy allows doctors to aim high-dose radiation at cancer cells and spare healthy cells.<\/p>\n

Such treatment is expensive. This year it will cost approximately $1 billion to operate St. Jude, with its 3,600 employees, and the majority of that must come from generous donors. But with people like Mike and Marge Bush, along with thousands of fundraisers across the country ranging from hot dog sales to miniature golf tournaments to a World Championship stop at TPC Southwind, there\u2019s no such thing as a hopeless cause.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Rather, it\u2019s all about \u201cFinding Cures, Saving Children.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information on St. Jude Children\u2019s Research Hospital, visit www.stjude.org<\/a><\/p>\n

To learn more about the Brian Bush Putt-for-Life, visit www.puttforlife.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This was supposed to be a preview of the FedEx St. Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind in Memphis, Tenn. Now… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":47,"featured_media":2719,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,18,7,19164],"tags":[1028224,1028225,92669,1028227,1028228,1028229,1028230,2832,1028231,2833,1028232,1028233,1012742],"class_list":["post-2716","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-golf","category-lifestyle","category-personalities","category-offcourse","tag-st-jude-childrens-research-hospital","tag-fedex-st-jude-invitational","tag-memphis","tag-brian-bush","tag-tours-of-st-jude","tag-danny-thomas","tag-brian-bush-putt-for-life","tag-terry-moore","tag-mike-and-marge-bush","tag-grand-rapids","tag-mi","tag-medulloblastoma","tag-dave-hill"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2019\/06\/1511212088045-1.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2716","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/47"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2716"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2716\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2764,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2716\/revisions\/2764"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2719"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2716"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2716"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theaposition.com\/teemoore\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2716"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}