REALTORS® and former NHLers make a good team

ormer NHLer Darcy Tucker at the Scotiabank Pro-Am for Alzheimer’s held May 14 and 15
At a charity hockey tournament featuring former NHL greats such as Wendel Clark, Owen Nolan, Adam Foote and Paul Coffey, the Average Joes like REALTOR® Michael Weiss got high praise from the pros.
Weiss, owner of Weiss Realty Ltd. in Toronto, raised more than $13,000 leading up to the Scotiabank Pro-Am for Alzheimer’s held May 14 and 15 in support of Baycrest Health Services, a leader in the fight against Alzheimer’s. His team made up of REALTORS® ended up raising $41,000 mainly by reaching out to past clients, family and friends. This year, more than $1.65 million was raised by 33 teams that took part bringing the grand total of the tournament’s 11-year run to nearly $30 million.
Weiss said he has been a part of the tournament since its inception because Alzheimer’s – like it has for many Canadians – affected his life.
“My grandmother died of Alzheimer’s so I wanted to do it in memory of her. Now my mother-in-law is nearing the end stages of Alzheimer’s and it’s hitting home once again,” he said.
By playing every year, Weiss has gotten to know some of the players, including multiple Stanley Cup winner Mike Krushelnyski.
“I’ve known Mike for a couple years,” Krushelnyski told the Canadian REALTORS Care® Foundation. “He does such a great job of raising money so when we do these things we try to get him a couple extra signed pictures or hats that he can auction off. I can’t thank him enough for all he does.”
Weiss Realty team
Weiss said he enjoys competing against players who have hoisted hockey’s Holy Grail, even though his end goal is to outdo the money total he raised the year prior.
“Hearing the stories from these guys is worth the price of admission alone,” Weiss said, who had Darcy Tucker, the gritty former Toronto Maple Leaf, on his team for this year’s tournament.
“Darcy told us he had only ever played against his son once before so we told him to bring him to the tournament the next day. His son ended up stealing the puck from him once and scored. Darcy, this huge celebrity, was just so excited at that and it was thrilling to see the two of them interact on the ice.”
Weiss’s team didn’t make it to the finals, but he said any of the people who took part will tell you that’s not the objective of the tournament.
“It’s about raising money and the tournament is always looking for new teams to join or for people to donate even after we’ve played.”
Baycrest’s Rotman Research Institute, one of the world’s elite neuroscience labs and the beneficiary of the funds, is developing a virtual brain to study the effects athletic impact and aging have on dementia.
Learn more about the Scotiabank Pro-Am for Alzheimer’s.
Donate directly to Weiss Realty’s team.

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