Greg Galdes Memorial Golf Outing 2009
In which Good Ol’ Schmoe puts down in writing both what he said aloud and what he wishes he said aloud when he stood up with a microphone in front of the roster of participants at the inaugural Greg Galdes Memorial Golf Outing on September 13, 2009; the message is more refined, but it is essentially the same, especially the tone.
As most of you know, I played golf with Greg countless times in our lives, especially as golf partners for the past 18 years in our golf league. We played together in many an outing like this one today. Often times, we played in different groups of the same outing. We would spread the love. I have many memories of these outings that we played separately and I am sure the players that played with him have. One repeated memory was what I saw as we got to the clubhouse after the round. It was then that I would see the other three people from Greg’s scramble team. I believe that – always – they would have a smile on their face. They also may have been shaking their head, looking down a bit, and mumbling to themselves a little at what they had just witnessed for the past four hours plus – but they were smiling. Greg made them smile. Maybe it was some small talk he had said that had become a running conversation for the round. Maybe it was the way he had completely whiffed on the tee box earlier, which was a staple of Greg’s game. Maybe it was the 20 foot putt he hit 30 feet past or barely three feet at all (take your pick). Maybe it was a great shot that had come out of nowhere or a long putt sunk and caused his teammates’ jaws to hit the ground before they got around to saying, “Great shot! Way to go!” Maybe it was his golf swing, which featured a unique unorthodox hip dance before hitting the ball. Or maybe their smiles were a result of listening to the many golf tips Greg loved to dispense when he had absolutely no business dispensing. All of these things were what made a round of golf with Greg enjoyable. I even remember his team winning on one occasion. I like to think that he helped that day not necessarily by using his golf skills but by providing the atmosphere of fun, which was, I can attest, the best part of Greg’s golf game. The result of which was smiles on the faces of all those who played golf with him.
So as all of you came into the clubhouse today after your round and handed me your cards, I noticed the smiles. Most of you had some remark to make. Some of the remarks boasted sarcastically of your performance. Some remarks exuded a little pride and confidence. Some remarks were just self-deprecating period. One group even refused to surrender their scorecard, explaining that it really was not needed. But it seemed that remarks or not, the scorecards were delivered with a smile. I prefer to believe that at least one corner of each mouth that was smiling today is attributable to Greg’s Spirit shining through. I’d like to thank you for that. Thank you for your smiles today.
Thank you for coming today and supporting the memory of Greg as well. Hope you all had as much fun as your smiles indicate. It could not have been done without all of you. Especially, it could not have been done without the hard work and dedication of Greg’s family and friends. Especially “The Sisters”, as I refer to them: Greg’s sisters Cheryl, Cindy, Carol, and Cathy. In addition to The Sisters, special thanks must be extended to Greg’s work colleague and friend Dan Mularski. Greg’s parents were instrumental in supporting this outing as well as the rest of Greg’s extended family, wife Cathy’s family, and Greg’s extended golf league family, the FSGL. Thanks to all. I mean it. I have received many thanks for getting this outing up and running, and I accept that thanks wholeheartedly. But I also must point out that I simply put the players in this together. I threw a bunch of dots on the board and the aforementioned worked hard to connect them all while I watched. I am not being overly humble, I am being completely honest. Good work everyone. Thank you.
Here’s to Greg. May you keep your feet on the ground at all times.
P.S. Thanks to the famous Jim for the very generous and impromptu introduction at the outing banquet. It was unexpectedly meaningful to me. Appreciated.
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