Jeff Hidalgo Memorial Golf Tournament

In September 2005, more than 40 Shippensburg University grads and others participated in a first-ever "Jeff Hidalgo Memorial Golf Tournament" in Harleysville, PA.  The Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity brothers, Hidalgo family members, and high school friends gathered to remember and pay tribute to Jeff Hidalgo (Ship '82, BA in Accounting), who passed away from illness in December 2004. 

When Jeff died, a large contingent of Sig Taus rallied to attend his memorial service.  They were stunned by the loss of a close friend, committed to remember him long after the services, and vowed to do a better job of nurturing the friendships and bonds of brotherhood we had forged in college, despite the fact that we were scattered across the country with demanding jobs, active families, and busy lives.

The idea for a golf tournament formed quickly, as it would provide an opportunity for socializing, reminiscing, and reflected Jeff Hidalgo's love of golf specifically and sports in general. 

The tournament attracted fraternity brothers scattered around the country, Hidalgo family members from across Pennsylvania, and Reading High School classmates (from which Jeff Hidalgo graduated in 1977). 

After a round of mediocre to really awful golf, tournament participants shared a dinner punctuated by stories and photos of their college years, and later sent a card signed by all 40+ golfers, photographs of the tournament, and a check to Jeff Hidalgo's wife to aid in the care and education of Jeff and Robbyn's
daughters Hayley and Natalie of Trabuco Canyon, CA. 

The most important lessons we learned were how strong the bonds of friendship are, even more than 20 years after our experience at Ship, and how important it is to take the time and to make the effort to renew and reinforce those friendships while we still have the opportunity here on this earth.