Hi my name is Joe Martini Jr. tournament director for the "Joe Martini Charity Golf Classic" I would like to introduce to you a very special person, who is still very inspirational to me. His name is Joe Martini, he is my father, mentor, and my best friend. My dad was an entertainer here locally and played in venues like the Mapes Hotel, Holiday Hotel, Harvey's at Lake Tahoe, and the Crystal Bay Club in Incline Village. The group he played with was called the Esquires, and in their day, they landed a small musical part in a movie called "The Tunnel of Love" starring Doris Day & Richard Whidmark. Being an entertainer, he worked mostly nights so during the day he would hang out at the "Shoe" (Washoe County Golf Course) either practicing putting or cooking lunch for the pro shop bunch. At one time during his career he either owned or managed the restaurant at the Shoe.
My dad loved people and, more so, entertaining them but he really had a soft spot for kids. He had expressed to me early on that he would like to do something for the local kids... well the rest is history.
In 1981 he retired from playing music but kept his entertainment consulting business going. He had lots of time to spend on the golf course after retiring but in August 1990 he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and passed away November 22, 1990. He never really had a chance to do something himself for the kids... but like I said earlier "the rest is history." Before my dad passed away we had a golf tournament to help off-set his medical bills, that tournament was called the "Joe Martini Friends & Family" and that's how this ride started.
Now in it's 36th year, the "Joe Martini Charity Golf Classic" is one of the longest running charity events in Northern Nevada. The tournament has donated over $310,000.00 to our local kids. Some of the charities that have benefited from the tournament are; Make A Wish of Northern Nevada, Angel Kiss, Hospice, Children's Cabinet and F.E.A.T. (Families for Effective Autism Treatment). The donation we made is still working, F.E.A.T. purchased a low pressure hyperbaric chamber that is used in stimulating the neuron receptors in the brain. The past couple of years we have helped out supporting The Marching Band at the University of Nevada, Reno, a couple of high school softball programs, a travel softball program and supported the University of Nevada's College of Liberal Arts. For the 30th we presented a check to the University of Nevada, Reno for an endowment in my dad's name! The check was for $30,000 which means we are able to start giving music scholarships right away. It is very exciting to be able to anchor my dad's legacy to this beautiful "Biggest Little City" in the world!!! Could not have accomplished this without the support of this community and everyone involved with this event!
The tournament is held about the same time every year around the 3rd. weekend in July and it's a blast. We used to start off with a dinner the night before at the Coney Island Bar, Greg and staff did an amazing job hosting this event... then COVID decided to show up, that kind of put the KABOSH on things for dinner. But that didnt stop the magic. TJ Duncan was super supportive in making the tournament happen so LakeRidge Golf Course became the tournaments home!!! "BUT WAIT" BETTER NEWS FOR ALL!!! THE DINNER IS BACK ON!!! Yes, thats right the dinner is back on. 5:30 drinks 6:00 dinner on July 18th. This year we have an actual sponsor for the dinner, it will be held at the Skyline Kitchen & Vine. We still have all the GREAT stuff ... raffle, thanks to the tournament Elf, we have some amazing prizes. toss in some goofy games on the course and you have yourself a great time. there is a BBQ at the end of tournament!" After the clean-up we normally finish off the day somewhere to tell funny stories about the days event. Would love to see you on the course or just hanging around afterwards...take a look around the site and contact me if you want to be part of a great cause...Remember, "it's all about the kids"
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