For the past several years, members of Thom. Somerville Co.’s charitable board has participated in Monday After The Masters, an annual celebrity Pro-Am golf tournament hosted by Hootie and the Blowfish in Myrtle Beach each Monday following the Masters Golf Tournament.

All proceeds from this tournament go to the Hootie & the Blowfish Foundation, which makes donations to education and junior golf charities.

“They’ve raised a ton of money for several great causes over their 20-plus years,” said Doug Riley, president and CEO of Thom. Somerville, a leading plumbing and HVAC wholesaler based in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, operates 21 trade locations and six retail stores throughout the Mid-Atlantic. “As a result of that awesome event, we’ve been inspired enough to put a group together and do something like it in the Washington, D.C. area.”

The distributor has announced its first “Contractors Against Cancer” golf event for Aug. 25-26, 2024 at the TPC Potomac at Avenal Farms. Yes, that’s right; next year. However, the Somerville organization is asking the PHCP industry to support the cause this August 2023.

“We wanted a long runway to get organized and cultivate financial support/sponsorship,” Riley said. “In the meantime, we are asking wholesalers and contractors across the country to support the 2024 event during the last week of this August by buying and proudly supporting polo shirts with the Contractors against Cancer logo.”

Somerville has partnered with the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, the largest and oldest colorectal cancer nonprofit organization in the U.S. All proceeds raised by the Somerville event will go to the Colorectal Cancer Alliance.

“Contrary to what most people believe, colorectal cancer is not an old man’s disease,” Riley added. 

By 2030, colorectal cancer is projected to be the No. 1 cancer killer among people 20-49. One in 23 men and 1 in 26 women will be diagnosed with this disease in their lifetime.

“But here’s the thing,” Riley added. “Sixty-eight percent of the deaths from colorectal cancer could be prevented with timely screening. We feel strongly about taking these steps toward awareness and a potential cure.”

In order to support the 2024 golf event, Somerville has created an order form for the polo shirts. The polos can be customized by adding a company logo to the sleeve. Part of the proceeds from every shirt will be donated to the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, a nonprofit organization dedicated to ending colorectal cancer in our lifetime.

“It’s our goal to get 50 wholesalers to get 15 contractor customers to buy only three dozen shirts on average,” Riley said. “If we can do those numbers, we just raised about $200,000, and equally important, we increased awareness and eliminated some unnecessary deaths.”

For information on ordering the shirts, log on to: https://www.ccalliance.org/get-involved/contractors-against-cancer