Rory’s Friends Find They Are Fit 4 The Stars!

The Centre Club in Gurnee, Illinois Delivers 60,000 Square Feet of Fun, Family Activities and Fundraising

General manager, Steve Aull, of the Centre Club in Gurnee, Illinois donated the club’s entire staff, space, and time for the evening’s festivities. From the boisterous bounce of basketballs, to the scintillating selections of the live and silent auctions, and the mouth-watering delight of Marcello’s catering, the 4th Rory David Deutsch Foundation Family Event offered something for everyone. As the sponsor of this action-packed evening of family fun, The Centre Club opened its doors from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm on November 13, 2004.

Guests for the evening were welcome to use many of the club’s facilities, such as the weight and exercise machines, the lap pool, whirlpool, and the racquetball courts. Organized games of basketball and wally ball were available for adults and children. A free-throw contest was arranged for the younger attendees. Margo Proeh of the Lake Forest Children’s Theater Company coordinated a series of games designed for the smaller children. These activities included hula hoops, a parachute, and a toilet paper romp.

One of the many goals of The Rory David Deutsch Foundation is to involve children as much as possible. Therefore the focal point of this event was no exception. “It has always been the wish of The Foundation that the major fundraising events include children so that they realize they can help out by donating their time and money,” said one of the event’s co-chairs, Robin Baba. “Many of our young participants donated their own money to make this event a success.”

Thanks to Marcello’s Catering, everyone feasted on pizza, pasta, and salad. “The Hip-Hop Connxtion” entertained the guests with their award-winning dance show. This group ranked second in a world champion hip-hop contest.

Co-chair, Beth Conen, noted that each year, “…we keep attracting new families and different sponsors.” These sponsors were responsible for underwriting the entire event. Among the donations were the incredible array of items for the silent and live auctions as well as the raffle prizes.

The silent auction featured a laptop computer, the opportunity to be an honorary bat boy or girl at a Cubs game, a tour of Halas Hall, and a jersey autographed by the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team. Live auction items included a black Labrador retriever puppy, a poker table, tickets to the Chicago Bears training camp, and tickets to a Duke University basketball game. The raffle generated an even higher level of excitement highlighting a Segway, a Vespa motorbike, and for the Grand Prize, a brand new Toyota Prius.

No event of this magnitude can be successful without the help of a host of volunteers. “I did want to acknowledge the work of Ellyn Samsky, and Enid Deutsch, Rory’s aunt and grandmother respectively. Beth and I may be co-chairs, but they do an incredible amount of work behind the scenes in order to help make this event successful.”

The 2004 event was, in Robin’s words, “…our best event ever.” There were 650 reservations made prior to the evening, and approximately 200 guests bought tickets at the door. When the donations were tallied, the event raised $340,000 for the battle against pediatric brain-stem gliomas.

“These were people with their families trying to help a good cause,” Robin said. “They came for the right reasons: to have fun, donate money, and create awareness. This was very personal because so many people were connected to the family, so many of them knew someone who touched Rory’s life.”

For co-chair Beth Conen, the spirit of the evening was captured in one of the evening’s more popular giveaway items. Each child in attendance received a Goodie Bag that contained a “Fit 4 the Stars” t-shirt, a winter cap, and a wristband. “It was a blue wrist band,” Beth said. “They called it ‘the Rory band.’ And on it was written, ‘Brighter Tomorrows.’” According to Beth, this was the most coveted gift in the goodie bag.