For the past 18 years, men and women golfers have rallied in support of the street children of Colombia. Over these years, 9,187 golfers have participated in the Esmeralda Charity Cup.
Cumulative proceeds of CHF 1,567,200 have enabled the Limmat Foundation to finance 35 projects for 8,540 street children over the course of 17 years.
The charity tournament has in the meantime developed one of the richest traditions of any event on the Swiss golf scene.
The seven qualifying tournaments of the 2013 Season will be divided into two circuits: the Swiss Circuit and the EU Circuit.
The main sponsor of the Swiss Circuit is the well-known Bank Sarasin & Cie AG Zürich. The Swiss Circuit tournaments will be played on the golf courses of GC Lucerne, GC Bonmont, GC Lipperswil, GC Crans-sur-Sierre; the final will be played at the GC Wylihof.
The tournaments of the EU Circuit have two main sponsors:
Strategic Investment Advisors Group, SIA, has taken on the main sponsorship of the tournaments in GCC Maison Blanche and GC Steisslingen.
The Klinik Pyramide am See will be the main sponsor of the tournament at the GCC Langenstein.
The commitment of the golfers will be rewarded this year as always with attractive prices. Prizes are being donated by long-time supporters of the event, but also by companies new to the Cups in 2013.
On March 13, 2012, exactly 40 years after its founding, the Limmat Foundation celebrated its anniversary. Through films, talks and interviews with project partners, 330 guests were able to create their own picture of the work of the Limmat Foundation.
Ueli Maurer, who until his election to the SwissFederal Councilor was a member of the Patronage Committee, praised the Limmat Foundation, which “pragmatically, with reliable local partners, works to improve the destiny of people.” ProFonds President Bernhard Hahnloser called all Swiss foundations to greater efficiency, holding up the Limmat Foundation as a model in this regard. Former SDC director Walter Fust highlighted the primacy of education, a main focus of the Limmat Foundation. Projects partners from the Philippines, the D.R. Congo and Peru joined the celebration. They recounted the many lasting successes achieved by projects of the Limmat Foundation.
The high point of the evening were the films that spread a contagious optimism among the viewers, by showcasing three project locations where the lives of people in need were significantly improved. Among these beneficiaries are two young musicians. Thanks to the support from Switzerland, they accomplished a leap from the streets of Bogota to the world stage. Lady Johana Herrera and Juan Jeferson Castillo are former street children. With the support of the Limmat Foundation, they found a home, finished their schooling and are now enrolled in a conservatory. They delighted the audience with works by Bizet and Tchaikovsky, a Colombian folk song, and a rousing O sole mio.
The Limmat Foundation’s anniversary celebration was made possible by the support of many donors. The main sponsor was Bank Sarasin & Cie AG.
Co-sponsors were Victorinox, Lindt Chocolatier, Illy Cafe, Klinik Pyramide am See, Caminanda Treuhand, avl-Dolmetscher.
The Limmat Foundation’s anniversary celebration was made possible by the support of many donors. The main sponsor was Bank Sarasin & Cie AG. Co-sponsors were Victorinox, Lindt Chocolatier, Illy Cafe, Klinik Pyramide am See, Caminanda Treuhand, avl-Dolmetscher.
Colombian Golfers support Limmat Foundation Projects
In Colombia, winter is also Esmeralda Charity Cup season. Two tournaments were played in the middle of February. This is the 14th time men and women golfers gathered to compete in Cartagena. Due to the effects of El Niño, the ground was extremely dry. The photo shows the three oldest golfers in the competition. The Limmat Foundation’s long-standing partner Actuar Pro Bolivar organized this annual event. The proceeds of the competition --CHF 9,000--will benefit this foundation. The money will fund the care center for children “Centro Madres Comunitarias.” The second Esmeralda Charity Cup tournament was played near Bogotá, at the exclusive golf resort Payandé in Villeta (Cundinamarca). 92 golfers gathered in the heat to support vocational training for teenage mothers, a project of the Fundacion Juan Felipe Gomez Escobar that is supported by the Limmat Foundation. The tournament raised CHF 15,500 for this goal. By raising this money, the golfers one the one hand made a concrete contribution to the fight against poverty in their homeland. Beyond this, the Esmeralda Charity Cup also strengthens the solidarity and the sense of responsibility of the Colombian people.
Datum :
Thu, 25.02.2010
BENEFIT CONCERT GIVEN BY BOSCONIA YOUTH ORCHESTRACHF 62,000 (USD 48’000) for the Street Children
The official results of the Bosconia Orchestra’s tour through Switzerland are in: over CHF 62,000 (USD 48’000)were netted for the vocational education of former street children in Colombia. A most satisfactory outcome!
The 47 street children – 35 musicians and 12 dancers – and their 8 chaperones arrived in Europe for their tour in the early fall of 2005. Trip expenses were shared by Belgium, Spain and Switzerland. The great success of this event is due in part to the generosity of the tour sponsors, who underwrote the expenses of the week of performances in Switzerland. Because of them, we were able to direct 100% of all donations and proceeds from ticket sales to the projects in Colombia.
Proceeds from the tour will make possible a new vocational education center in Buenaventura (on the Pacific coast of Colombia), where the problem of street children has become particularly acute in the past few years. The Pelicanos Center will take in 90 former street children, and will provide vocational training for a further 300 at-risk youth.
At the invitation of the Limmat Foundation, 47 former street children from Colombia performed for an audience of 400 in the Zurich Volkshaus on September 26, 2005. Father Javier De Nicolo -- whose name is synonomous with the effectiveness of working with street children -– emphasized in his greeting the crucial importance of giving affection to these children. This is what encourages them to eventually leave the street and freely venture into a suitable training center.
The 35 young musicians played ambitious pieces by Rossini and von Suppé with great élan. In the second half of the program, a dozen children accompanied Caribbean folkloric songs with a charming, tropically colored dance. The youths from Colombia proved to the enchanted Swiss audience that their education program is a resounding success.
In the name of the Zurich government, the city council president, Dorothée Fierz, gave her heartfelt speech to the young musicians and their escorts in Spanish. “If one knows,” she said, “that these children lived on the street for years under inhumane and degrading conditions, one is overwhelmed to see what is possible after a few years of intense care and affection. Understanding and attention, which they never experienced in their early childhood, prove what amazing feats people are capable of.” Ms Fierz encouraged everyone present to continue in their support of these children, be it as concertgoer, sponsor, helper or donor, in the knowledge that all contributions go entirely towards the vocational training of these children.
Photo of the young dancers
Zurich’s legislators dance the salsa with former street children
A pleasant surprise awaited the Zurich cantonal councillors on Monday, September 26, 2005, during a break in their session. The Bosconia Youth Orchestra played an invigorating impromptu concert for them on the Gemüsebrücke. As happened the day before, the music proved irresistible: the tropical rhythms and the urging of the children moved the legislators, visibly amused, to shake a leg themselves. Even the councillors Fierz and Aeppli proved themselves in fine dancing form.
City Council President Fierz dancing the salsa with 11-year-old Nico from Colombia
The other performances in Switzerland were also very successful:
-Tuesday, September 27the at 18:30 in the Kursaal in Berne
-Wednesday, September 28th at 18:30 in the Palais des Nations in Geneva
-Thursday, September 29th at 18:30 in the Gemeindesaal in Vandoeuvres
The concert program included works by Brahms, Rossini and von Suppé as well as cumbia, salsa and folkloric music of the Caribbean.
“I wish these young musicians much success and congratulate the Limmat Foundation on its outstanding work for the benefit of needy children.” Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey.
