First Annual Fore A Cure Golf Tournament Held October 1, Raises $240,000

November 09, 2007

The First Annual ‘Fore a Cure’ Golf Tournament, a benefit for the Cystinosis Research Foundation, raised $240,000. The Oct. 1 event at Coto de Caza Golf & Racquet Club drew 138 golfers and raised the money through individual and corporate sponsorships, donations and auctions.

All event proceeds will fund research to find better treatments and a cure for cystinosis, a rare metabolic disorder that afflicts 500 children and young adults in the United States.

“Thanks to the tremendous support from our sponsors and participants, we are able to fund important research that promises to bring us closer to improved treatments for cystinosis,” said Renee Carter of Coto de Caza, who chaired the event.

“Additionally, the event enabled us to educate more people about this terrible disease. The more people learn about cystinosis and the treatment advances that have occurred since the CRF was formed in 2003, the more they will continue to support our future efforts,” she said.

Silver sponsors were: FannieMae, CST Environmental, Fidelity National Title, JM Realty and Time Warner Cable.

Bronze sponsors were: Western National Group, SARES●REGIS Group, Oltmans Construction, Moran & Co., JPMorgan, the Bristol Group, the Frome Family Foundation, TLG Paving, MacFarlane Partners, Manly, McGuire & Stewart, David and RL Peters, Plaza Bank, Wells Fargo, MV&E Partners, Bank of the West, Sean P. Deasy of CB Richard Ellis, Real Page and Cushman & Wakefield.

Other sponsors included: Key Bank, Traditional Jewelers, Noelle Marketing Group, U.S. Trust Bank of America Private Wealth Management, Eagle Construction, First Regional Bank, Irvine BMW, St. John, Bruce Lambert Jewelry Design, Strategic Financial Group, The Wine Club, Villa Park Landscape, RKZ Architects, Lucas General Contracting, DMS Facility Services, Bevon & Herron, Capri Capital, Chapman, Glucksman & Dean, CommerceWest Bank and Contractors Flooring.

In patients with cystinosis the amino acid cystine accumulates in the tissue due to the inability of the body to transport cystine out of the cell. This causes development of crystals, resulting in early cell death. The disease chiefly strikes children. There are an estimated 2,000 sufferers worldwide.

“Cystinosis is a metabolic disease that eventually, slowly destroys every organ in the body, including the liver, kidneys, eyes, muscles, thyroid and brain. There is a medicine that prolongs the children’s lives, but there is no cure. Almost all sufferers succumb before 40 years old,” said Coto de Caza resident Renee Carter, chairwoman of the event.

Geoffrey Stack, an owner of Irvine, Calif., real estate company SARES●REGIS Group, and his wife, Nancy, formed the Cystinosis Research Foundation in 2003. Their daughter Natalie, 16, suffers from cystinosis. Through the non-profit foundation, the Corona del Mar couple has raised more than $6 million, all of which has been spent or is earmarked to fund cystinosis scientific studies in the United States and Europe. The annual Natalie’s Wish banquet on June 1 in Newport Beach raised $2.125 million and featured pro football Hall of Fame quarterback Jim Kelly.

For more information the Cystinosis Research Foundation, contact Zoe Solsby at 949-223-7610 or go to www.natalieswish.org.