Staff Report
BRANT NEWS

Entry to the Walter Gretzky CNIB Celebrity Golf Classic is sold out, but it’s not too late to play alongside Brantford’s Lord Mayor in the tournament’s final farewell.

The 20th Walter Gretzky CNIB Celebrity Golf Classic Charity Auction offers the chance to bid on a foursome in the sold out tournament with Gretzky as the foursome’s celebrity golfer.

The reserve bid is set at $1,800, the same price it costs to play in the tournament, but with Gretzky as the guaranteed partner.

If golfing is not your cup of tea, bid on brunch for four with Gretzky at East Side Mario’s, followed by a trip back to his place for a look at Wayne Gretzky’s trophies and sports memorabilia.

Four VIP opening day passes to the RBC Canadian Open at the Hamilton Golf and Country Club on July 23 are also up for bid, as well as two floor-level tickets to a Toronto Raptors game, complete with a $40 gift certificate to Wayne Gretzky’s restaurant in Toronto.

Brant News hosts the online auction, with 100 per cent of funds raised going to the CNIB and Wayne and Walter Gretzky Scholarship Fund. Twenty post-secondary students with vision loss are chosen from across Canada each year to receive $3,000 to $5,000 scholarships from the fund.

“It’s a bittersweet end to a great event,” said Brant News general manager Len Offless. “Thanks to the Gretzky family for more than 20 years of raising money for the community.”

Bids will be accepted until 4 p.m. on Friday. Visit www.brantnews.com and click on the  20th Walter Gretzky CNIB Celebrity Golf Classic Charity Auction banner on the top right hand side of the page to place a bid.

Silent and live auctions will also be held on Monday, July 9, at the Brantford Golf and Country Club. Bid on autographs from Johnny Bower, Bob Baun and Lori Dupuis, as well as signed items from Wayne Gretzky, Sarah Jessica Parker, Phil Collins, Tim Thomas, Gordie Howe, Theo Fleury, Sarah McLachlan and more.

Tickets and gift certificates for the Twin Valley Zoo, Brantford Symphony, Lighthouse Festival, Flamboro Downs, Toronto Science Centre, Niagara Butterfly Conservatory and Wilderness Tours will also be available.

Admission is free. The auction preview begins at 6 p.m. and the live auction begins at 7 p.m. Call Sue Bartlett at 519-753-3486 for more information.