The History of the "Friar"

It all started on the last Friday in May, 1985.  Mike Friar convinced 19 buddies to skip school the last Friday of their senior year at East Kentwood High to play a 2 man scramble at Briarwood Golf Course.  The winning team that day is still up for debate as several teams maintain they earned "medalist honors".   What can be confirmed, however, is that no one got caught and all twenty graduated a week later.

The tradition continued the next year with the tournament moving to the last Saturday in July.  The event grew in numbers and what started as an annual reunion, expanded beyond high school buddies to family members, neighbors, college roommates and work friends.   After a number of years of being welcomed, and then uninvited, by a number of different golf courses, the Friar found a home at Thornapple Point.  To say the least, the tournament, while still fun, is a little toned down from the 80's and 90's......most of the time.

In 1994, Mike, along with wife DeAnne and friends Pat Martine and Morrie Fongers, began raising money for charity. Throughout the years, the "Friar" raised money for the Children’s Assessment Center in Grand Rapids, Paws with a Cause, Wheel Chair Sports, & God’s Kitchen. From 1994 to 2003, the "Friar" golfers and sponsors donated over $80,000.

 In the Fall of 2003, the fundraising became personal for Mike and his wife DeAnne.  Their son Kevin was diagnosed with a little known disease called Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.  The diagnosis was grim: Duchenne had no cure and the boys afflicted typically only survived until their late teens.  They had already been blessed with a healthy daughter Colleen (Duchenne only affects boys), but found out soon after Kevin's diagnosis that DeAnne was due to have another boy 7-1/2 months later.  Their youngest, Kyle, was born in July and also had Duchenne. 

The Friar Fight switched its fundraising goals to support Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD) in 2004.  Created and run by parents of boys battling the disease,  PPMD's mission is to end Duchenne.  The Friar Fight to End Duchenne was launched.

Since 2004, the Friar Fight has raised nearly $300,000 for PPMD. That stands for Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy. This non-profit is focused solely and finding a cure for this disease. Roughly $.92 of every dollar donated goes to the efforts of research and finding a cure for this disease that strikes 1 in ever 3500 boys born today.

This summer, on the last Saturday in July, a group of buddies will get together, welcome some new friends and play golf. Its a two man scramble, just like it was in 1985.  And, like last year, we will have some fun, tell the same stories, celebrate our families, support those that battle Duchenne, and help the Friar Family fight for a cure.

Join us.