IUOE Local 793 will be holding the 11th Annual Gary O’Neill Memorial Golf Tournament on Monday, June 10, 2024, at Rattlesnake Point Golf Club in Milton.
Proceeds from the tournament are donated to the Esophageal Cancer Program at University Health Network (UHN) in Toronto led by Dr. Jonathan Yeung, Director of the Esophageal Cancer Program and a surgeon-scientist in the Division of Thoracic Surgery.
Thanks to participation and donations in 2023, Local 793 was able to donate $162,379.67 to this worthy cause, pushing the total raised to date to $1,208,726.82 – money that went directly to the fight against esophageal cancer.
This tournament and cause are especially important to Local 793, as Gary O’Neill was president for 13 years until his untimely passing in 2011 due to cancer. He was an avid golfer, and this tournament is now held annually in his honour.
Esophageal cancer is the fastest growing cancer type in North America and the sixth most common cancer in Canada. The five-year survival rate for those with esophageal cancer are as low as five per cent, principally because esophageal cancer is often detected too late and, once detected, there is a lack of effective interventions.
