A good walk to support a great cause

Given golf’s rising popularity over the past five years, even its harshest critics can’t make stick the sarcasm falsely attributed to Mark Twain that the sport is a good walk spoiled.

By contrast, those who’ve played in the ShareLife golf tournament can affirm it’s a great way to support a remarkable cause.

The yearly gathering of golfers under the charity’s 40-agency umbrella might be far from its most critical activities yet it’s one close to the heart of executive director Arthur Peters — and to those who answer the call to tee it up again each June.

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“I think what makes the ShareLife Golf Tournament so special is the commitment of the people involved with it. Many golfers, sponsors, committee members and volunteers return year after year because they believe in ShareLife’s mission and enjoy being part of a day that makes a real difference,” said Peters.

He points out that continues to be true even as the tournament gets set to celebrate its 30th year in 2027. 

“It’s a wonderful day of fellowship, but its purpose remains at the heart of it: supporting ShareLife-funded social service agencies as they care for people across our community,” said Peters.

Jim Milway, a former Chancellor of Temporal Affairs to the Archdiocese of Toronto, has played in the tournament f0r 15 or so of its 30 years. He said what makes the ShareLife event special for him is that heart of it is the Sacred Heart — its explicitly Catholic character.

As anyone who golfs regularly knows, it could be possible in a sizeable Canadian city to play a charity tournament a day from spring through course closing in late autumn. The game, by its nature, lends itself to fund and profile raising for a dizzying variety of great and worthy causes.

ShareLife, however, isn’t just a highly commendable cause. It is concrete charity in real time, real motion, for real clients who need the support of all its agencies. The tournament, Milway says, becomes a day in the life of the community that gives life to that charity.

“There are so many people there from the Catholic community. It’s a chance to bump into priests golfing and to catch up if you haven’t seen them in a while. It’s a chance for networking but also meeting old friends. It’s a Catholic event. You say grace before the meal,” Milway said.  

That gives a different dimension to the usual post-tournament festivities of dinner, silent auction, speeches and even the raffles. Three years ago, Cardinal Frank Leo’s winning ticket won him a dozen expensive Pro V1 golf balls. A non-golfer, Leo promptly gave the $70-plus door prize to someone else. The speeches themselves often come from the hearts of those who’ve been helped by ShareLife.

“They tug the heartstrings,” Milway said. “They show what ShareLife is really about.”

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Paul Borg, who has been on the tournament organizing committee for five years after playing in the tournament for the first time six or seven years ago, says even local celebrities brought in to give keynote talks deliver inspiration as well. He recalls one TV personality who gave an impromptu account of how much his Catholic upbringing in an Irish family meant to him.

“We sat at the same table together because I helped get him there and he was in tears talking about how his mom called and said ‘good for you. ShareLife is so important. I’m glad you’re (using his media profile) to  help.’ ”

Borg is a determined optimist that such testimonials, among other efforts, can help the tournament raise its profile even higher in Toronto Catholic’s community. Currently, it hosts from 128 to 136 golfers each year, and in 2026 netted $114,000 for ShareLife, up from $76,000 in 2025. He believes those numbers could be boosted sufficiently to support a second tournament entirely, especially one oriented to the cohort of younger people who’ve taken up the game in droves since the Covid years.

 “We’ve had really good incremental success in the last couple of years, but I still don’t believe the profile of the ShareLife Golf Tournament is as big as it could be. I’ve been to a lot of large tournaments over the years, and we can dig deeper. We can look for more prominent Catholic businesses that could come and create more sponsorship opportunities,” Borg said.

“We also have focus on the next generation. There are a lot of young people building businesses or in the business world. We need more of them to come to our tournament.” 

Borg notes that his own interest in voluntary service with ShareLife and the golf tournament was piqued by the example of his father’s dedication to the Knights of Columbus.

“My dad always told me that if you have an opportunity to help, whether its monetarily or with your time, do it. My dad was not a golfer, but I’ve taken what he said and applied it to ShareLife and SickKids (Hospital). I like ShareLife because there’s such a vast variety of charities that are supported because of them,” he said.

On the course on tournament day, Borg notes, he likes the ways neophyte golfers are welcomed alongside experienced, and truly talented, golfers.

Someone in that category is Joe Montalbano, who also sits on the tournament organizing committee. He’s part of a foursome that brings groans from the other golfers when the winners are announced by routinely turning in the lowest scorecards.

“If you go birdie, birdie, eagle, you’ve got to mark it down. You can’t lie. We’ve got some good golfers on our team. My son played competitive golf, so that doesn’t hurt. I mean, we like to golf. But I’m thinking if we go back next year and we win (again), we’re going to have to say, ‘listen, we’ve already won; give it to the next person,’ ” Montalbano laughs.

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For Montalbano, giving to ShareLife through the tournament and otherwise, means giving to neighbours who are most in need. He rejects the very idea the old criticism golf is an elitist game at odds with the charitable needs of those ShareLife supports.

“It’s a charitable event, and it’s people who want to give. That’s why I’m happy to be part of the organizing committee of the ShareLife Golf Tournament, and happy to support them.”

A version of this article appeared in the September 27, 2026 issue of The Catholic Register with the headline "A good walk to support a great cause".