Red Coat Dinner Honors Governor Pence and Tom Kelley
Last Tuesday, the 57th Red Coat dinner was held in the St. Joseph Ballroom at Hotel Fort Wayne, honoring Governor Mike Pence and Tom Kelley as Hoosier Celebrities of the Year. The dinner was held in the midst of events for the Western Golf Association's partnership with the Mad Anthonys Pro-Ams during the 2014 Hotel Fitness Championship at Sycamore Hills Golf Club.
Amateur players had the chance to team up with professional golfers from the Web.com Tour Finals, raising record amounts for the Mad Anthonys Children’s Hope House, which provides temporary housing for families with a hospitalized child at any Fort Wayne area hospital, and the Evans Scholars Foundation, which provides housing and tuition scholarships to caddies across the country.
Established in 1957, the Mad Anthonys are business professionals and leaders from northeast Indiana who have raised millions for various charitable endeavors. Elected as Indiana's 50th governor in November 2012, Pence was in attendance at last year's event when Hotel Fitness CEO Bruce Dye received the Red Coat.
“As a lifelong Hoosier, the Mad Anthonys is an organization I know well and admire, so it is a great honor to be named recipient of the Red Coat,” Pence said in an official statement.
Kelley is the president of Kelley Automotive Group with six dealerships in Fort Wayne and Decatur. Formerly the owner of an IndyCar racing team, Kelley is an avid amateur golfer and a nine-time winner of the Fort Wayne Golf Association’s men’s city tournament.
Jim, Kelley's father, founded Sycamore Hills and received his own Red Coat in 1998. “Being born and raised in Fort Wayne and an avid golfer, there are few things more momentous I can think of than the Mad Anthonys and the Red Coat,” Tom Kelley said. “In addition, being able to join my father in the ranks of Red Coat recipients is an incredible opportunity and honor.”
“Both Gov. Pence and Tom Kelley fully embrace and embody what it means to be a Hoosier and recipient of the Mad Anthonys Red Coat,” said Don Banowetz, board president of the Mad Anthonys Foundation. “Being a part of the Hotel Fitness Championship once again is a continuation of our long-standing tradition of providing Fort Wayne and northeast Indiana a premier Pro-Am charity golf event, while increasing support of the Mad Anthonys Children’s Hope House and other important causes for children in our region.”
For more information visit:
Bruce Dye, 2013 Red Coat recipient
Governor Mike Pence receives his Red Coat
Governor Mike Pence
Tom Kelley receives his Red Coat
