Bill Johnson to host golf tourney to benefit brain injury awareness

Bill Johnson to host golf tourney to benefit brain injury awareness{mosimage}BETHLEHEM, N.H. — Bode Miller will join brain injury survivors and fellow Olympians Bill Johnson and Dave Irwin of Canada on the links at the first Bill Johnson Foundation Celebrity Golf Classic for Brain Injury Awareness on Wednesday, Sept. 6.

Open to the public, the 18-hole scramble shotgun start and best-ball format tournament will be held at the historic Donald Ross-designed Bethlehem Country Club in the heart of New Hampshire’s White Mountains.

While there are more than 5 million Americans living with the disabilities caused by traumatic brain injury, very few people are aware of the consequences of this all-too-common injury (1.5 million compared to 11,000 spinal cord injuries per year). According to the Web site of the Brain Injury Association, neurologic damage readily disrupts how a person thinks and processes information.

In 1984 at Sarajevo, Johnson became the first American male to win the Olympic downhill gold medal, backing up his prerace boasts that he would win the gold.

While attempting a comeback in 2001, Johnson crashed during a race in Montana and suffered a severe brain injury. He was in a coma for three weeks and awoke with a variety of long-term brain damage. Still skiing and also golfing, Johnson now works with friends and family to help raise funds for those dealing with brain injuries and its effects.

“It means a lot, it’s personal, what people have done for me since my accident,” Johnson said. “The Bill Johnson Foundation is my way of saying thanks.”

Irwin, one of the “Crazy Canucks” who represented Canada on the World Cup and in Olympic races in the 1970s and ’80s, also suffered brain injuries during a ski event in 2001 and continues to battle long-term brain damage.

Invited celebrities expected to attend but yet to be named include past and present U.S. Ski Team stars, retired Major League Baseball, National Hockey League and National Football League players, and some Hollywood celebrities.

For more information about the Bill Johnson Foundation Celebrity Golf Classic for Brain Injury Awareness, call Ned Johnson at the Bethlehem Country Club at 603-869-5745.