Orlando’s AAA Four Diamond Rosen Shingle Creek hotel and the championship Shingle Creek Golf Club are proud to welcome back Lucille O’Neal and her son Shaquille O'Neal and friends for the “Sixth Annual Shaq’s Mama Said Knock You Out” charity fundraising event.
Taking place Sept. 18, 2009, this year’s “Shaq’s Mama Said Knock You Out Golf “ and new “Soulful Midday Soiree” will feature the ever-popular and exciting golf tournament at Shingle Creek Golf Club, followed by a fun-filled and nostalgic afternoon of good food, good music and good friends. Evoking a 1930s-style “Cotton Club” atmosphere, the “Soulful Midday Soiree” will feature smooth jazz, a hearty buffet of soul food favorites, as well as friendly back-room poker, table games, dancing and more.
Individual tickets to the star-studded “Soulful Midday Soiree” charity event are now available for $150 per person. Golf tournament tickets are available through event sponsorship packages ranging from $3,000 to $50,000. Golf tournament sponsorship packages also include tickets to the “Soulful Midday Soiree” and to a private VIP reception on Sept. 17. For more details including how to purchase tickets and sponsorship opportunities, call LO and Associates at 888-358-1082 or Deena Copeland at 813-286-8520, ext. 251 or visit www.ocqualityoflifefund.com.
Though Shaquille O'Neal, or Shaq, is now the starting center for the National Basketball Association’s Cleveland Cavaliers, he has a special place in his heart for Orlando, where he got his NBA start playing for the Orlando Magic in 1992 and where his mother Lucille resides. Shaq and his mother will be joined by friends including NBA legends named among the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History – Charles Barkley and Julius “Dr. J” Erving -- as well as former Orlando Magic star and Atlanta Hawks radio announcer Dennis Scott. Other shining luminaries include Alonzo Mourning, Shaq’s teammate on the 2006 NBA Champion Miami Heat; Matt Geiger, former Philadelphia 76er NBA Star; Andia Winslow, LPGA Golfer; and Sam Jones and Jamal Wilkes, both retired NBA stars.
Shaq and Lucille’s event benefits the Odessa Chambliss Quality of Life Fund, which was established in honor of Shaq’s grandmother and Lucille’s mother, who worked for more than 16 years as a nurse and passed away in 1996. The name for the fund comes from the O’Neal family, who said, “At the time of her death we learned that it is not the quantity of years one lives, but the quality of life that is important.” The fund honors the lifetime accomplishments of Odessa Chambliss by funding nursing and educational scholarships at colleges and universities, including the University of Central Florida, Bethune-Cookman University and Valencia Community College. Donations also fund cancer research.
“We’re so excited to be back at Shingle Creek and promise the event will be full of fun and laughter with plenty of great soul food, jazz and new friends to make,” said Lucille O’Neal. “That, combined with the fact that proceeds will go to a worthwhile cause, make this an event one you don’t want to miss.”
“The ‘Shaq’s Mama Said Knock You Out’ event is always one of the highlights of the year at Shingle Creek,” said Leslie Menichini, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, Rosen Hotels & Resorts. “We are honored to be a part of this worthwhile cause. As always, we will do everything possible to ensure that it’s an impeccable time for attendees from the second they arrive until the moment they depart.”
To book a room for the event, guests may call the Rosen Shingle Creek reservations line at
(866) 996-6338. For more information, visit www.rosenshinglecreek.com or call (866) 996-9939.
