This Real Estate Board of New York (REBNY) hosted its Annual Pro-Am Tennis Tournament on September 6, 2012 at Sportime on Randall’s Island in New York.  The annual tournament gave participants the opportunity to play with pros while making a difference in the lives of patients in need of life-saving transplants.  This year, REBNY chose the Gift of Life Bone Marrow Foundation as the beneficiary of the event in honor of a close friend and supporter who has been fighting Leukemia for the past six months. 

The Real Estate Board of New York is comprised of 12,000 professionals involved in New York realty including owners, builders, brokers, managers, banks and insurance companies.  REBNY is New York’s oldest and finest real estate organization.  Efforts throughout New York City consist of social and civic activities, including banquets, golf and tennis outings, educational events, membership lunches and dinners.  The Annual tennis tournament, now in its 25th year, was co-chaired by Jonathan Mechanic and Stephen Siegel. 

This year’s Champions were Pro Ashley Fisher and Justin Lewis, with Pro Mat Snyder and Stephen G. Berliner coming in second place.   Everyone who attended enjoyed the friendly camaraderie on and off the court, while raising awareness for Gift of Life’s international bone marrow donor registry.

Gift of Life Founder and Executive Director, Jay Feinberg, spoke with participants and guests about the Organization’s important work.  Being a transplant recipient himself, Jay told the guests how Gift of Life began with the search to find his donor and that it will continue its life-saving work until all patients find their miracle matches.  Additionally, volunteers were on hand to answer questions about joining the registry as well as swab any attendees who were interested in becoming volunteer bone marrow donors that day.

Jay stated, “it is an honor to not only be the beneficiary of the funds raised from the event, but to have had the opportunity to share Gift of Life’s mission with everyone in attendance.  Thank you REBNY for your generosity and support.”

More photos of the event can be found on the Gift of Life Facebook page and Pinterest account.

If you’d like to hold a tennis tournament fundraiser, or any other sport fundraiser in your area contact info@giftoflife.org.