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Eskimo Golf Society by Fr. Paddy Sheridan O.M.I

Back in the year 1980 my time in the Irish Centre (Camden Town) came to an end. On 8th December I moved into Goldhurst Terrace with a new brief, namely to work and raise money for our new and poorest Oblate Mission in the shanty towns of Brazil. You may well ask, why the “Eskimo” Golf Society? The answer to that is this. The Oblates in Ireland had a fund – raising outing once a year and they called it Eskimo Golf because the Order had become famous for their work with the Eskimos. Even though we were working for a different Oblate mission I thought the name is good enough for us too and so we stuck with the Eskimo Golf Society. Father Paschal Dillon O.M.I. was our Provincial at the time and it was he who appointed me to this job. As a matter of interest it was Father Paschal who replaced me in Goldhurst Terrace after his term as Provincial and I was transferred to St. Anne’s, Birmingham.

Begging is not the most attractive job in the world even when it is for such a poor mission as shanty towns in Brazil. Yes, I made appeals in churches up and down the UK; I organised raffles and did all the things I could think of to bring my colleagues in Brazil some financial support. I wanted to give them my full support. After all, quite a few of my own class were out there with heavy demands on them and little to give. The seagulls and the children were all fighting for the same crust of bread in these shanty towns.

I had an inspired idea that one of the best ways to raise money was to get people together to put a few quid into a fund by doing something that they love doing. There were thousands playing golf and they loved the game. That was when the whole idea of a golf society was born. The rest is history as they say.

I got some flyers printed, and had them handed out at a few of the local churches. I called a meeting. Five or six men turned up. The only name I can remember from that meeting was Mark Fitzpatrick. Of the whole lot of us there that night, I felt that Mark and myself were the two who knew least about golf or golf societies but we were the most enthusiastic. It was Mark’s enthusiasm that prompted me to appoint Mark as Captain. Mark was a member of Highgate Golf Club and it was there we had our very first Eskimo Golf Society outing. I think about twenty five men turned up that day. Some good soul who knew how to add up score cards came up with a winner. I have no recollection how much we made on the day. Speaking about money, I have to say this, we never wanted to make money at the expense of enjoyment of the day. A lot of money has been raised over the years. The Eskimo Golf Society has been to many parts of the world. There have been many golf days, Captain’s and President’s days since the society was founded, much money was raised over the years; but while all that is important and memorable the greatest blessing of all has been the getting together of so many people who otherwise would never have met. We all have wonderful memories of outings and trips and there are stories told of so many happenings at all these events. We had our difficulties too like the time we called an emergency meeting and all agreed to expel our vice captain from our society. I am delighted that I went ahead with the thought of founding this society. I thank God that so many good people have given so much to so many poor people. None of us will ever know the good we did until we meet the good Lord. One thing is certain, he will have our score card marked correctly.

Paddy Sheridan O.M.I

The Ladies Eskimo Golf Society (L.E.G.S.)

The men’s society was in existence for some years and many ladies took part in our golf days. I discovered that there were hundreds of ladies playing golf. For sometime I was toying with the idea of getting them together. It is said so often that “someone should do something” and it struck me that I was that “someone”. I never heard of a Ladies golf society and I thought to myself, why not. I passed on my idea to a few lady friends told them to get as many ladies as possible to Trent Park Golf course on such a day. They did all that and there was a big turn out but more importantly there was fun, enthusiasm and a fantastic atmosphere in Trent Park that day. I arranged the next outing for Brent Valley. Even greater numbers turned up that day. It was a wonderful occasion. At the end of the dinner I called for order, welcomed everyone, thanked everyone and then formally launched the “Ladies Eskimo Golf Society” which would be known as “L.E.G.S.” it took twenty seconds to work out how the L.E.G.S came into the title. Then there was an outburst of laughter and applause. Then I simply appointed a Lady Captain, a Lady Vice Captain and a Secretary; no vote, no discussion, nor “for” or “against”. I am not sure what year that all happened. Since then I have moved on and they have moved forward. They have raised money for many charities and for the Oblate Mission in Brazil but over and above all the money raised the members have made many life long friends. Long may this Society continue in that spirit.