USS Saratoga Museum Foundation, Inc.

Providence – More than 15 former Red Sox players and other celebrities are expected to be on hand to support the USS Saratoga Museum Foundation’s campaign to honor the achievements of Williams and other individuals best known for their successes in other walks of life, but who also served their country honorably and well.

This project will benefit from a best-ball golf tournament at the Metacomet Country Club in East Providence, RI with a shotgun start at 12:30PM.

Former Red Sox General Manager Lou Gorman will be Master of Ceremonies at the dinner following the tournament, also at Metacomet. The evening event, sponsored by Sovereign Bank, will be open to non-golfers and will include a major auction of sports memorabilia, to include items autographed by Ted Williams and Babe Ruth.

Former Red Sox pitcher Dick Drago and Rhode Island's own Mike Stenhouse are serving as Celebrity Hosts for this event. They have invited a number of former teammates and other Red Sox legends to participate.

"Participants from last year know what a great turnout of ballplayers we had, including Luis Tiant, Rick Miller, Bill Monbouquette and more than ten others," said Frank Lennon, who is spearheading the project for the Saratoga Museum. "We expect a similar response this year," he concluded.

Former players expected to participate include Tiant, Miller, Bill Lee, Billy Almon, Richie Hebner, Sam Horn, Ray Jarvis, Joe Lahoud, Skip Lockwood, Keith MacWhorter, Bill Monbouquette, Bob Montgomery, Joe Morgan, Mike Roarke, Ken Ryan, Dave Stenhouse, and Joe Trimble.

Both events are cosponsored by the Florida-based Ted Williams Museum, which relocated last year to Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The end result will be a permanent display of Ted's military and baseball memorabilia here in Rhode Island as part of the Saratoga project.

The Ted Williams Museum will provide enough baseball material so that visitors can make the link between Ted's military and baseball careers," says Lennon.

Catalyst for the agreement was the Foundation's acquisition of a rare F9F Panther jet, the same type Williams flew in combat as a Marine fighter pilot in Korea. According to Lennon, the plane will be restored in the colors of Ted's unit, Marine Fighter Squadron VMF-311.

This effort enjoys the support of the Red Sox organization. In a 2006 letter, Red Sox VP Dr. Charles Steinberg wrote, “On behalf of the Boston Red Sox, we are delighted to support your mission...[we] wish you the best of luck in your capital campaign, and look forward to offering our support.”

While the dinner is open to everyone, the golf event is limited to 36 foursomes. Given the nature of the event, organizers expect the tournament will sell out quickly--especially since ESPN featured the event in a recent interview with Drago.

Golf registration includes cart, barbecue lunch, beverages on the course and a prime rib dinner. Golf participation will be limited to 36 foursomes. Cost to play is $800 per foursome or $225 per individual; tee signs are $150.

Tickets to the dinner will be $50 per person, $90 per couple.

Some major sponsorship opportunities are also available for both events.

For further information or reservations, please call Jennifer St. Peter at 401-398-1000, or e-mail: savesara@aol.com.

Registration forms may also be downloaded from the internet at: http://www.saratogamuseum.org/events/golf/flyerap07.pdf

Dick Drago and Mike Stenhouse are available for interview/comment. Please call Frank Lennon at 401-831-8696 to make arrangements.

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The USS Saratoga Museum Foundation, Inc., a 501 (c) (3) non-profit and an all-volunteer group, has worked for eight years to turn the vision described above into reality. Further information can be obtained at http://www.saratogamuseum.org

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Last Updated:
8/28/07