The Valley Sun

Musician Muzzie Braun, Sun Valley Resort's Jack Sibbach, and KTVB news anchor Mark Thompson, with his twin daughters, arrive at the Killebrew-Thompson Memorial Welcome BBQ at Trail Creek Cabin yesterday.

While the skies overhead were heavy with smoke from numerous wildfires burning around Idaho, the smoke emanating from the fire pits roaring at Trail Creek Cabin was far more welcome. Delicious smells of roasted pork, beef and seasoned potatoes greeted the nearly 200 guests invited to the 36th Annual Killebrew-Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament.

As friends and families converged on the sumptuous feast, the atmosphere was relaxed and jovial. The attendees – including celebrities from the sporting world such as Joe Washington, Jack Morris and Frank Quilici, stars of the screen such as Kevin Sorbo and Arte Johnson, and Idaho VIPs Muzzie Braun, Mark Johnson and Congressmen Crapo and Simpson - enjoyed a traditional Western welcome BBQ, and learned their fate for the upcoming tournament.

Cooking up the good stuff for the guests of the 36th Annual Killebrew-Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament

Pinned to the side of the marquee were the pairings for the purpose of the event, the Killebrew-Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament, played on the courses of Sun Valley Resort. The four-person two-best ball tournament has been raising money for a very worthy cause over the last four decades; research into a cure for cancer and leukemia. In 2011, $700,000 was raised at this event, with proceeds benefiting the University of Minnesota Cancer Research Center in Minneapolis and the St. Luke’s Mountain States Tumor Institute in Boise.

Renamed this year to honor the tournament’s co-founder, baseball Hall of Fame slugger Harmon Killebrew (who passed away last year), the event was born from Killebrew’s desire to raise money for research into the disease that killed his Minnesota Twins teammate infielder Danny Thompson. For an excellent article on the history of the tournament and more details as to the weekend’s events, be sure to read Idaho Mountain Express sport’s editor Jeff Cordes’ piece here.

Happy trails!

Mrs. Sun

Killebrew-Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament

August 15 – 18, 2012

Every August for the past 35 years, the Danny Thompson Memorial Golf Tournament in Sun Valley, Idaho has gathered celebrities, sponsors, participants, Members of Congress and supporters with one common goal: the cure for cancer and leukemia.

Started in 1976 by Harmon Killebrew and Ralph Harding, in memory of the Minnesota Twins shortstop, Danny Thompson, the Tournament is now considered one of the leading fundraisers for cancer research.  Last August the Board of Directors voted to honor the memory of Harmon Killebrew and his many contributions by adding the Killebrew name to its title.

We are proud to announce that the 2011 contribution to the recipients was $700,000. The proceeds from the event go to the University of Minnesota Cancer Research Center in Minneapolis and to the St. Luke’s Mountain States Tumor Institute in Boise.  Due to the participation and support of nationally known celebrities and corporate sponsors, the tournament has not only raised in excess of $12 million that has gone directly to cancer and leukemia research, but over the years those funds have been used in various matching grant programs that have been leveraged to the million dollar level annually.

"The contributions by the Danny Thompson Golf Tournament, critical in and of itself, has leveraged additional research funds of well over $25 million."  President Emeritus Robert Bruininks, University of Minnesota.

Becoming a part of this very worthy cause not only makes important strides in cancer and leukemia research possible, but also means four days of enjoyment for you and your guests in beautiful Sun Valley, Idaho.  We encourage you to participate in the upcoming event, which has been set for August 15-18, 2012.

For further details, please do not hesitate to contact our office.

Georgie Fenton
Tournament Director

208-726-1049

www.killebrewthompsonmemorial.com