A Day on the Course, A Lifetime of Support: Golfing for the 100 Club of Massachusetts
- David Cutler
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Last Thursday, I had the privilege of spending the day on the course at Sandy Burr Country Club in Wayland for the first-ever charity golf tournament hosted by John Guilfoil Public Relations (JGPR) out of Canton, benefiting the Hundred Club of Massachusetts. 98.5 The Sports Hub got in on it too, running a celebrity foursome auction with Hardy, former Red Sox pitcher Manny Delcarmen, Wahlburgers' Paul Wahlberg, and national anthem singer Todd Angilly — with every dollar raised going straight to the cause.
It was a beautiful day of golf. But that's not what stuck with me. What stuck with me were the stories.
Between holes, I had the chance to talk with a few of the people the 100 Club exists to support — people who lost their loved ones in the line of duty, sharing what it's actually like to lose a parent/grandparent who wore a badge. One thing that came up more than once: when a police officer or firefighter is killed in the line of duty, the paychecks stop the very next day. No warning, no transition period — just grief, and suddenly a family facing the mortgage, the bills, the everyday cost of keeping a household running, with no notice at all.
I also got to spend some time talking with the club's Executive Director, Tracie Hines, who walked me through everything the organization actually does for these families. It's a genuinely touching organization, and hearing it laid out by the person running it made the whole day hit differently.
That's where the 100 Club steps in. Founded in 1959, their mission is simple: "Caring for those who care for us." When a Massachusetts firefighter or police officer is killed in the line of duty, the club is there within days with an initial $10,000 check to the surviving spouse, funded through the James B. Crockett Memorial Fund. From there, it becomes more than a check — college and vocational school tuition for the kids, counseling and wellness support for the whole family, summer camp and enrichment programs so kids get to just be kids, legal and financial guidance during a stretch when neither is easy to think about, and smaller things too — Red Sox games, Pops concerts, a holiday party, gifts throughout the year — that keep a family connected to a community that hasn't forgotten them. For families who lose a loved one outside the line of duty, the club still steps in with $15,000 to a surviving spouse and $5,000 per child, because grief doesn't check the paperwork first. Since 1959, that's added up to roughly $23 million distributed to nearly 1,800 Massachusetts families — support that, as the club puts it, lasts "long after the headlines fade."
The tournament set out to raise at least $20,000 — and from the energy on the course and the reaction of everyone involved by the end of the day, we crushed it. Every dollar raised, from the golf and the online celebrity auction alike, goes straight to the families I just described.
I think a lot about "home" in my work, not just as a transaction, but as the foundation a family stands on. Spending the day with people who understand exactly how much that foundation matters, especially in the hardest moments of their lives, was a good reminder of why that work matters to me too.
One of the easiest ways to stay involved beyond a single event is to become a member. The Hundred Club has membership options for individuals, families, businesses, and first responders themselves — including a First Responder membership for just $100 a year, which feels pretty fitting for a club with "100" in the name. There's genuinely no better feeling than knowing you're helping support the people who spend their careers supporting the rest of us. If that's something you'd like to be part of, you can join or learn more at 100clubmass.org/membership.
And if there's ever anything I can do for you or your family — home-related or otherwise — my door is always open.
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