Competitive runner Rhet Hulbert to speak at benefit event

Motivational speaker and competitive runner Rhet Hulbert will present “Running Saved My Life,” on Sunday, August 13 at 6 pm at a fundraising dinner and auction at Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis Club. The event is the final activity for the 16th Annual Steve Winograd Memorial Diabetes Tennis Tournament, which will be held Friday, August 11 through Sunday, August 13, 2017.

Benefiting the St. John's Hospital Foundation Diabetes Fund, the three-day tennis tournament concludes with a dinner that features a silent and live auction as well as speaker Hulbert.

Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 33, Hulbert says diabetes has not limited him. “I have improved my best times in almost every distance -- from the mile to the marathon -- since then.”

Hulbert is a member of the Team Novo Nordisk Running Team, which came in first place in a 24-hour test of strength and endurance at the 2014 Back on My Feet in 24 event, a relay on an 8-mile loop that pitted the Novo Nordisk team against 700 other runners.

Auction items at the dinner, which is generously sponsored by Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis Club, are some of the most sought-after in the valley and include a Jackson Hole Mountain Resort Weekend Warrior ski pass, 2 tram tickets to see the eclipse, golf and tennis lessons, local experiences, and dining gift certificates.

"The impact this event has on the Diabetes Fund is significant,” said Hayley Miller, MD, who specializes in internal medicine, diabetes, and metabolism at St. John’s. “We depend on the generosity of our community to run many of the programs that St. John's offers for people who are living with diabetes."

Teams in the doubles tournament can be mixed, women's, men's, or parent/child. Registration is $100 per person, and $50 to play in a second category. Players 17 years and younger play for free. Breakfast throughout the weekend is provided by The Bunnery, and Jackson Hole Golf & Tennis Club sponsors lunch for players and spectators.

Dinner and auction tickets are complimentary for players and are $50 for the public. Children 12 and under eat at no charge.

Tournament registration and dinner tickets are available by calling 739-7517 or online by clicking here.

The Steve Winograd Memorial Diabetes Tennis Tournament, founded by tennis pro Eddie Kolsky in 2001, has raised over $300,000 for St. John's Hospital Foundation Diabetes Fund. These funds help send children to diabetes summer camps, provide financial assistance and education to patients, and support the purchase of medical equipment. The diabetes program reduces the number of hospital admissions and helps prevent complications from diabetes, including heart disease, kidney disease, and blindness.

St. John's Diabetes Education staff also provide community education to help lower the incidence of diabetes in the region. Funds raised at this event will also go towards supporting the 2nd annual Diabetes Summit, to be held in May 2018 and to feature presentations on the artificial pancreas.

For more information about the tennis tournament, contact Eddie Kolsky at 307-690-2552 or St. John’s Hospital Foundation at 307-739-7517.

For more information about St. John's Diabetes Education services, click here or call 733-7222.

##

Media contact: Karen Connelly, 307-739-7380, kconnelly@tetonhospital.org.

ABOUT ST. JOHN’S MEDICAL CENTER
St. John's Medical Center in Jackson, Wyoming, offers patient-centered clinical excellence and community wellness services through a full-service hospital, primary care, and specialty physician practices, and a long-term care Living Center.

ABOUT ST. JOHN’S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
The mission of the St. John’s Hospital Foundation is to secure philanthropic support to advance the mission and strategic objectives of St. John’s Medical Center, including patient-centered care, clinical excellence, and community wellness.