Our Great City

The Vernon Wells Perfect 10 Foundation is pleased to announce its Cocktail Reception and golf tournament to take place on November 1 and 2, respectively, at the Four Seasons Resort and Club in Las Colinas. The Foundation, led by Toronto Blue Jays’ centerfielder Vernon Wells, was created to support and protect homeless children in North Texas and to contribute to non-profit organizations that provide general welfare for children.

 In 2007, Vernon and Charlene Wells partnered with Michael Young and Taunee Taylor, both with the Texas Rangers baseball organization, and Stephanie Gillespie, an Arlington police officer and Mission Arlington volunteer, to embark on an endeavor that forever changed the Wells’ purpose in life. After taking a group of underprivileged children shopping, they became painfully aware of the large population of homeless children in Arlington.

“Shopping with the children for their basic needs brought an awareness of a demographic population that had previously been unfamiliar to our family,” said Mr. Wells. “We created the Vernon Wells Perfect 10 Foundation to provide a permanent solution to ending the cycle of poverty in their lives.”

The Wells’ goal for the Foundation is to open a general residential operation for homeless children. The facility will also offer short-term shelter for children displaced by Child Protective Services.

According to recent market surveys, the state of Texas leads the nation with more than 300,000 homeless children. A 2008 count found that there were 1,273 homeless children on any given night in Dallas County and that one in 20 Texas children do not know where he or she will get the next meal.

“These statistics are unacceptable,” said Mr. Wells. “It’s my hope that the gala and golf tournament will generate stronger awareness of our city’s most vulnerable population – homeless children.”

The provisional lineup for the golf tournament on Monday, November 2, includes a variety of seasoned professional athletes: Ken Griffey Jr., Derek Jeter, Emmitt Smith, CC Sabathia, Andy Pettitte, Michael Young, Ian Kinsler, Torii Hunter, Michael Irvin, Kevin Millwood, Josh Beckett, Andruw Jones, AJ Burnett, Scott Murray, Tom Grieve, Mark McLemore, Larry Brown, Jim Sundberg, James Denton, Aaron Hill, Orlando Hudson, Hal Sutton, Roger Staubach, Homer Bush, Jose Guzman, Dave Stewart, and others. Each foursome will have a designated professional athlete on its team for this shotgun start/scramble format. The tournament will begin at 12 noon with a welcome and review of the rules by former KXAS-TV 5 sports anchor Scott Murray and will end with a post-round cocktail reception, raffle and awards presentation.

A separate opportunity to attend a sports health forum presented by Dr. Brian Nimphius, a recognized chiropractor in Southlake, will be offered at 10:00 a.m. on November 2 at the Four Seasons prior to the start of the tournament. The cost of attendance is $25 and includes an autograph session, following the conclusion of the presentation, featuring Mr. Wells and some of his professional baseball colleagues who will be playing in his namesake tournament. They will also participate in the forum with Dr. Nimphius. For more information regarding Dr. Nimphius, please visit www.victorychiropractic.com.

Funds raised at the gala and golf tournament events will go directly to the Foundation. For more information about the gala and golf tournament, sponsorship opportunities and event registration, please visit www.vernonwellsfoundation.org.