Children’s home gets Players charity

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May 18, 2010

Sebastian’s Action Trust will benefit from this week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.

A holiday house for children with life-threatening or life-limiting illnesses is to benefit from this week’s BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
The Tour Players’ Foundation, the charitable foundation of The European Tour and its members, has selected Sebastian’s Action Trust as the designated local charity for their flagship event this year.
The Sunninghill-based charity was formed in the memory of Sebastian Gates, who attended the same school as several players’ children, including those of Retief Goosen and Anthony Wall.
Sebastian died on Christmas Eve 2003 aged nine after a two-year battle with a cancer known as a Wilms’ tumour. In his short life he underwent a stem-cell transplant, scores of chemotherapy courses and radiotherapy.
He came up with the idea of creating a holiday respite house himself and began raising funds. A site in the Hampshire village of North Waltham has since been donated to the trust by a local landowner and building work will begin in June.
Jane Gates, Sebastian’s mother and director of the trust, said: “We are both delighted and honoured to have been selected by the Tour Players’ Foundation.
“This is a very exciting year for us as we will see our unique respite holiday house become a reality, so there couldn’t be a better time to have the prestige associated with this tournament.”
Foundation chairman Mark Roe commented: “The trustees and I heard of the tremendous work the trust does and how well supported the charity is by Tour members and staff and their families.
“That, coupled with the difference our support could make to a small local charity, meant it was a natural choice. We hope everyone during the week will get behind such a great cause.”

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