Green Valley golf pro puts together charity tourney

Joel Jaress, the golf professional at the Country Club of Green Valley, is organizing the Taylor Jaress Cancer Benefit tournament Saturday, June 30, at Haven Golf Course in Green Valley.

The four-person scramble entry fee is $80 and includes golf, lunch and prizes. Deadline to enter is June 20.

Make checks payable to Taylor Jaress and mail to Joel Jaress, 77 E. Paseo de Golf, Green Valley, Ariz., 85614.

Taylor, 9, is the granddaughter of Lily and Bill Jaress of Green Valley, daughter of their son, William, and niece of golf pro Joel and his brother, Jon, a longtime Tubac Country Club golf pro who now runs his own landscaping business in the Tubac area.

Taylor was recently diagnosed with Ewing's sarcoma. It is a rare disease in which cancer cells are found in the bone or in soft tissue. The most common areas in which it occurs are the pelvis, the femur, the humerus, and the ribs.

James Ewing (1866-1943) first described the tumor, establishing that the disease was separate from lymphoma and other types of cancer known at that time.

Lily and Bill say that Taylor is a cheerful 9-year-old who likes to dance, loves to read and has a wonderful attitude, even through she has received a variety of treatments including chemotherapy.

The Ewing’s tumor is in her leg and her treatment is ongoing and expensive.

The entire Jaress family has come together to help this child and other fundraisers will be held on her behalf.

Call Joel at the Green Valley Country Club pro shop at 625-8831 for more information.