Past Events

Another year, another event in the books. With Pickleball being so popular right now, we made a decision to join the craze. We planned for it to be held outdoors in South Brunswick. We have always been fortunate to have strong support from our Parks & Recreation and Mayor’s Office. They were kind enough to reserve the township courts for us. Sadly, there was nothing they could when the weather was not looking promising to hold Ray’s 8th Annual fundraiser outdoors.

So, the week of the fundraiser, we reached out to several indoor facilities to check availability. The stars aligned and Iron Peak Sports & Events was just launching their indoor courts. They truly saved the day and allowed us to use them. We were thrilled to be the first to play on their courts! It was exciting for Ray to see the games live and cheer for people he knows. It was somewhat a friendly competition, but people were serious! Players were different ages and skill levels but everyone had a great time!! We are so thankful for everyone for their support – whether you played or sponsored. Thank you!!!

2022 was definitely unique. 2022 marked the first time we had to figure out a rain date and move it inside. Thankfully, CJ Hendricks offered the High School gym and Andrew Bor from Rock It Entertainment played music to make it lively, fun and social. Ray was shocked that Principal Varela played and the students enjoyed playing and beating him in particular. It was a lot of fun and that is always the most important thing to us. We enjoyed seeing people we know and meeting new people. We want to thank everyone for being part of this year’s charity event!

We had started the year planning for the 6th Annual Kickball Tournament. Covid concerns caused us to contemplate other options. We knew we wanted to get people together and have fun and were less concerned about the activity. We are so thankful that CJ Hendricks suggested a cornhole tournament and offered to help organize the brackets and standings. What we love about cornhole is anyone can do it – age and athletic ability have nothing to do with your competitiveness.

Sunday September 19th was a gorgeous day at Rowland Park and we could not have asked for a more amazing group of people to attend Ray and Bacchus’s Cornhole Tournament. Sunshine, music, laughs and beanbags were in the air – what more could we ask for! Ray enjoyed seeing people doing happy dances when they cornholed; he also enjoyed seeing people throw beanbags astray and laugh at themselves. All in good fun.
The rounds went quickly and people were smiling. Some were even dancing to the music Andrew Bor was playing. It was great to chat with people. After a year plus of Covid restrictions, we, Ray especially, enjoyed spending the day outside and with people. We want to thank everyone who participated, donated and/or was a sponsor!!

Due to Covid and safety concerns, our 6th Annual Kickball Tournament was put on hold. We still wanted to have a fun community event. Furthermore, we did not just want this to be a fundraiser for Ray, but also a happy distraction for people all over.

Ray and Bacchus’s Virtual Bow WOW Walk showcased an amazing dog community….not only throughout the US, but also in Canada and Ireland! We were able to bring together people who love dogs, walk their dogs and wanted to participate in a positive and fun event. People messaged us saying they loved seeing The Adventures of Ray and Bacchus the Bernedoodle’s Facebook page full of happy people and dogs even if they do not have a dog.

Ray was thrilled to receive photos of people in his themed event shirt on their walk. He enjoyed going to Beech Woods Park on gorgeous September Day to walk Bacchus and see other dogs. It was an amazing event and we thank everyone who participated, donated and/or was a sponsor!!

We are so thankful that Mike and Glori Callagy, owners of Board & Brush in South Brunswick, wanted to support our fundraising efforts for Bacchus’s service dog training. They opened the doors on Wednesday October 16th for a Pick Your Project Night to benefit Ray and Bacchus.

It was a sold out night thanks to friends and word of mouth. We are thankful so many people wanted to be part of this event. Board & Brush is such a great place!! The sign Matt and I made there is hanging in our family room. It was great to have a chance to watch people make their signs and chat with as many people as possible.

It was the night before Ray’s 11th birthday, so we wanted to celebrate that milestone. We surprised Ray with a birthday cake. He loved everyone singing “Happy Birthday” to him!

Thank you so much to everyone who helped make this night a success – people who came and businesses that donated!!! Pizza was provided by Osteria Procaccini. Wine was provided by Valenzano Winery and some other places. Chocolate covered pretzels was provided by David Bradley Chocolatier. Ray’s birthday cake was provided by Palermo’s Bakery.

Earlier this year, Ray was gifted a bernedoodle (mix of a Bernese Mountain Dog and Poodle) from Highfalutin Furry Babies in Florida to train as his service dog. Ray is thrilled and Bacchus is doing great and growing big and strong. This year’s kickball tournament proceeds will be used for his training.

As such, the event shirt, plaques and flyers were designed with a drawing of Ray and Bacchus. When we shared the story, people were very touched and excited for Ray to have a service dog, especially one as cute as Bacchus!!!

We received a lot of support from sponsors who wanted to be involved. We are extremely grateful to our sponsors!!! Then, we started to reach out for teams to play in the tournament. There was a lot of excitement and we know how difficult it is to organize a team. We were so touched when The Marisa Tufaro Foundation sponsored six South Brunswick High School sports teams, so they could play. In total, we had 14 teams come out on a gorgeous September Sunday. Wow!!

To entertain the players, Andrew Bor from Rock It Entertainment played music and kept things moving. We are so thankful for Andrew volunteering to help! The music was a really nice addition and added a new element to the event.

We had some old and some new teams make it to the playoffs. The South Brunswick Police Department successfully defended their title. Ray was on hand to congratulate them and give them their championship plaques. What a tournament! We hope 2020 is just as great!!

Thank you to everyone who made this a special event!!!!