Bringing 75 Celebrities, One-of-a-Kind Music Events and a 5K to the Desert March 6-13
6th Annual Fundraising Weekend Raises Funds for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®
By Andrea Carter
The sixth annual Warburton Celebrity Golf Tournament will return to the desert from March 6-13, bringing in more than 75 stars, songwriters and rock legends for a weekend of golf and one-of-a-kind music events – kicking off with a 5K Run/Walk.
The event has grown to become “St. Jude Week in the Desert,” all to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital®, which is leading the way the world understands, treats and defeats childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. The tournament and its events will be held at JW Marriott Desert Springs and Classic Club in Palm Desert.
Tournament host, actor Patrick Warburton, perhaps best known for playing Puddy on Seinfeld as well as the star of the syndicated sitcom Rules of Engagement, the voice of Joe on Family Guy and numerous movie roles in movies like Ted and Ted 2, The Tick, Disney’s The Emperor’s New Groove and Planes: Fire & Rescue, and DreamWorks’ Mr. Peabody & Sherman, brings together many of his celebrity friends to highlight a star-studded weekend in the desert raising much-needed funds for kids battling pediatric cancer and other life-threatening diseases. Warburton stars in a new series coming out in March 2016, called Crowded – also starring The Good Wife’s Carrie Preston, who will be making an appearance at the tournament.
Children from all 50 states, including California, and around the world receive care at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. St. Jude also freely shares the breakthroughs it makes, so doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children.
It will cost nearly $1 billion this year to run St. Jude, and 75 percent of the funding comes from the public. Thanks to events like the Warburton Celebrity Golf Tournament, families never receive a bill from St. Jude for treatment, travel, housing or food – because all a family should worry about is helping their child live. This year organizers hope to raise more than $1 million to support the St. Jude mission.
“St. Jude Week in the Desert” will kick off with a 5K Run/Walk, on Sunday, March 6, at the Classic Club. Registration is at 8 a.m. and the Run/Walk will begin at 9 a.m., with a Fun Run for kids beginning at 8:40 a.m. The 5K will feature refreshments, live music by a local band of 13-year-old rockers called D-Tension, and the winner will receive two tickets to the Friday Night Jam Session. Other medals and prizes will be presented, as well. Registration is $40 for adults 18+, $30 for kids ages 6-17, and children 5 and under are free.
Celebrities will begin arriving on Thursday, March 10, for Songwriter’s Night – which will be held at the JW Marriott Desert Springs at 7 p.m. This will be an evening with a group of renowned Nashville songwriters telling the stories behind their biggest hits, along with performing those hits. New songwriters this year include Liz Rose, who co-wrote a number of hits with Taylor Swift including “Tim McGraw” and “You Belong with Me” as well as the 2016 Song of the Year, “Girl Crush.” Another new addition is Leslie Winn Satcher, who recorded two albums of her own and has co-written several singles for such artists as George Strait, Martina McBride and Vince Gill. Other songwriters scheduled to appear include Tim Nichols, who penned Tim McGraw’s iconic #1 hit, “Live Like You Were Dying” and Jo Dee Messina’s “Heads Carolina, Tails California;” Bob DiPierro, who had huge #1 hits with “American Made” performed by the Oak Ridge Boys, “Southern Voice” performed by Tim McGraw along with “Coming Home” from the movie soundtrack, “Country Strong;” and Kelley Lovelace, who wrote the smash hit “All-American Girl” performed by Carrie Underwood as well as huge Brad Paisley hits like “Ticks,” “I’m Still a Guy” and “Camouflage.” The event will be hosted by HLN morning news anchor, Robin Meade. Tickets are $100.
Friday night’s Jam Session has generated a lot of buzz as “the best event in the desert” because of its unique line-up of Rock-and-Roll Hall of Famers and other famous rock recording artists who perform some of their hits in what becomes essentially a 4+ hour rock-and-roll variety show. Scheduled to perform this year are Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Alice Cooper, Don Felder (The Eagles), Robbie Krieger (The Doors), Steve Cropper (Blues Brothers/Booker T & the MG’s), Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Danny Seraphine (Chicago), and Alex Lifeson (Rush). Other legends on the line-up include Kim Carnes, Skunk Baxter and Tom Johnston (The Doobie Brothers), Micky Dolenz (The Monkees), John Elefante (former lead singer of Kansas), Wally Palmer (Romantics), Tommy Thayer (KISS), Phil Solem (The Rembrandts), Robin Wilson and Jesse Valenzuela (Gin Blossoms), Dave Brock (The Doors) and Robin Meade (Headline News anchor, “Morning Express with Robin Meade”). Celebrity Jam Session tickets can be purchased for $150. Tickets sold at the door (if available) will be $200.
“This tournament is so extraordinary because of the way it incorporates musicians – we keep hearing consistently there is no other event like this in the desert,” said Clarke Rheney, tournament chairman. “We have rock and roll legends and hall-of-famers who come out to this event to share their music and do their part to raise money and awareness for the kids of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.”
Other commitments for celebrities who are scheduled to appear at the golf tournament include actors Kevin Nealon, Richard Kind, Scott Baio, Richard Karn, Carrie Preston, John O’Hurley, Kevin Sorbo, Sam McMurray, Kurt Fuller, David Leisure, Galen Gering, Bruce Thomas, Pauley Trickey, William Devane, Raymond Cruz and Brian Thompson; and athletes like former NFL pros, Sterling Sharpe and Kordell Stewart; Major League baseball players, Steve Garvey, Scott Erickson, and Kurt Bevacua; and NHL Hall of Famer, Grant Fuhr. Golf tournament entries are $2,500 per player.
The Saturday Soiree will feature red carpet appearances that evening by many of the celebrities involved with the tournament, as well as a dinner and dancing to music by the band, Sixwire & Friends, the featured band on the television show, Nashville. Tickets for the Saturday Soiree are $250.
Event sponsors include Castelli’s Ristorante, Classic Club, Enterprise Holdings, the H.N. and Frances C. Berger Foundation; Michael Shubert & Associates, News Channel 3/CBS Local 2, Prime Source Entertainment Group, Shakti Warriors, Sixwire and Tito’s Handmade Vodka. Presenting sponsor for the 5k Run/Walk is HighTower Palm Desert, hosted by Classic Club, with additional sponsors as follows: Anthony Vineyards, Desert Empire Insurance Services, Godecke Clark, Hyde’s Air Conditioning & Heating and Pro-tech Mats Industries.
“National is proud to help sponsor the sixth annual Patrick Warburton Celebrity Golf Tournament to benefit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital,” said Rob Connors, vice president of brand marketing for National Car Rental. “For nearly two years, we’ve worked closely with Patrick to promote the National brand, and we are happy and honored to support him in raising money and awareness for such an important cause.”
The Warburton Celebrity Golf Tournament is the second highest grossing golf tournament for St. Jude nationwide.
For more information or to purchase tickets to any of the shows or register for the golf tournament, visit thewarburton.com.
