Babes Against Cancer Swings Into 52nd Year

LONG ISLAND, NY — The 52nd annual Babes Against Cancer tournaments season is opening next week — with a kick-off event at the Brookville Country Club — and by October the more than two dozen golf and country clubs on Long Island that participate expect to raise more than $1.5 million — as usual.

Since its inception, Babes Against Cancer has raised more than $38 million, making it the largest American Cancer Society fundraiser of its kind. Funds generated are split equally between breast and prostate cancer support programs.

"The Babes program is the No. 1 golf program in the nation for all of the American Cancer Society and the No. 4 Distinguished event nationally," Kathleen Magistro, Associate Director, Development for the Northeast Region of ACS, told Patch.

The annual series of coordinated events are due to the joint efforts of more than 300 volunteers who put together member-run and member-attended private events that draw more than 3,000 participants.

Jeanine Filardi, chair of the Babe events at the North Hills Country Club, said she was pulled in when a friend took over the committee. She became the chair in 2017.

"Too many of my friends have been diagnosed with breast cancer, I wanted to get involved for them. Raising money to fund research seemed like a great place to start," she told Patch. "Our Babe has not changed too much over the past, we try new concepts and eliminate the ones that did not work. We have a large committee and listen to all the suggestions the ladies come up with. Every year we strive to raise more money than we did the year before."

Cheryl Caiazza, chair of the Babe committee at the Hamlet Golf and Country Club, said she donated to and enjoyed the events, and then joined the "beautiful and strong bunch of ladies" on the committee.

"Cancer has been a part of my family since I can remember," she told Patch. "Watching the great strides of research and meeting with the warriors who had fought that battle, from breast cancer to brain cancer to prostate cancer, it gave me an inner fire to continue in that search for a cure."

The annual months-long extravaganza celebration Wednesday features guest speaker Geralyn Lucas, 28-year breast cancer survivor, breast cancer awareness activist, and bestselling author whose first book "Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy" was made into an Emmy-nominated Lifetime Original Movie.

"The Kickoff on May 15 at Brookville Country Club is our celebration of the 2023 Babes season highlighting top clubs and volunteer success stories," Magistro said. "Over 200 members from 22 different country clubs on Long Island come together for this day."

The tournaments themselves are about 75 individual events, from golf, tennis, pickleball to card games. They're held by each club from June through October. Participating golf and country clubs:

• Glen Oaks Club
• Fresh Meadow Country Club
• The Greens at Half Hollow
• Old Westbury Golf & Country Club
• Hamlet Golf & Country Club
• Cold Spring Country Club
• North Shore Towers Country Club
• Pine Hollow Country Club
• Noyac Golf Club
• North Hills Country Club
• Brookville Country Club
• Hempstead Golf & Country Club
• Garden City Country Club
• Muttontown Club
• Indian Hills Country Club
• Piquet Lane Tennis Club
• Village Club of Sands Point
• Rockville Links
• Port Jefferson Country Club
• North Shore Country Club
• Cherry Valley Club
• South Fork Country Club

Babes Against Cancer was started in 1972 by Sandy Zuckerman Rothstein. She was a breast cancer survivor who organized the first tournament at the country club where she was a member, namely the Muttontown Club, to raise funds and awareness for breast cancer.

Rothstein motivated thousands of Long Island golfers to join her fight by creating and growing the Babe Zaharias Memorial Tournament — re-branded as Babes Against Cancer in 2014 — and she is still honored.

"My standout moment was being selected for the Sandy Award last year," Filardi said.

"The Babe, as we call it, is a thankless job, a really big job. To be honored, was such a special moment for me," she said. "What sustains me? Cancer is still a part of our lives. I want a cure."