Remo Campitelli, the ‘King Bushwacker’ of Huntsville’s Bushwackers Hockey Club, is gearing up for the 12th annual charity hockey tournament.
Campitelli said this year’s event will feature four teams of mostly local hockey players who will play three games at the Summit Center on Aug. 16 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
He said the event is designed to support children in the hospital who are suffering from cerebral palsy, cystic fibrosis, and cancer. He said the fundraiser will also assist those kids with basic needs like food and other necessities.
“What the charity has done over the years is give each one of these children who have these terrible diseases their own HillRom breathing machine. Which removes all the mucus, and these kids are healthy every day of their lives because of this machine,” Campitelli said.
He said over the 11 years of the fundraiser, over $150,000 has been raised.
“For me, it’s like I gather my family that I haven’t seen for a while because they’ve been with me for 12 years,” Campitelli said. “So they’ve put this date away every year because of this tournament, just like a family reunion.”
This year, they have two charities they want to support. He said they expect to get between $2,000 and $2,500 for the Hospital and about $2,000 for a religious charity.
Campitelli said these last few years, they have donated about $11,000 to the hospital. Last year, they raised about $5,000.
“It is good for the town, it is good for us, and we are all sort of doing our little thing for the community,” he said.
To donate or to know more about the event, contact Remo Campitelli at 705-571-4996.
