The W M Fares Group Charity Golf Tournament came to a meaningful close this year, marking its 30th and final annual tournament after three decades of fundraising, friendship, and community support.
Held on July 2, 2026, the tournament brought together sponsors, golfers, volunteers, business leaders, charitable organizations, family members, and friends for one final gathering around a cause that was never only about golf. The 2026 event was presented by BMO Financial Group, with support from a broad group of gold sponsors including Bell Aliant, Dexter Construction, CIBC, Kent Building Supplies, Ocean Contractors, BrokerLink Insurance, Kohltech, GBS Technologies, MNP, and First National Financial LP.
The tournament was hosted by W M Fares Group, the Halifax-based company founded by the Honorary Consul of Lebanon in Halifax Wadih M. Fares, a community leader and seasoned developer. For many in Halifax, Mr. Fares’ story is closely tied to the story of the Lebanese community in Nova Scotia.
This year’s final tournament carried that same spirit. Over thirty years, the event supported a wide range of local and charitable organizations, including Special Olympics Nova Scotia, the Epilepsy Association of the Maritimes, Shelter Movers, Brigadoon Village, the Mental Health Foundation of Nova Scotia, Ronald McDonald House Maritimes, Parker Street Food & Furniture Bank, Make-A-Wish Canada, the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust, Caritas Lebanon, and others.
Public posts from previous years show the tournament had become a familiar part of the Halifax charitable calendar. In 2025, the Epilepsy Association of the Maritimes referred to the 29th Annual WM Fares Charity Golf Tournament, noting that it had raised over $1.5 million for numerous causes. A 2026 public post from a sponsor described the 30th and final tournament at Glen Arbour Golf Course as an event that had raised over $2 million across its history.
The final evening was also a moment of reflection. In remarks prepared for the event, Mr. Fares reminded guests that the tournament “was never really about golf.” It was about people: friendship, generosity, compassion, and the belief that a community can make a difference when it comes together.
Some of the causes supported through the tournament became deeply personal for the Fares family. Mr. Fares spoke about his granddaughter Brooklyn’s diagnosis with Dravet Syndrome and how that experience gave the family a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by families living with epilepsy. He also recalled attending a Special Olympics banquet, where the joy of the athletes reminded him that one of the greatest gifts a community can offer is the opportunity to make someone smile.
That personal connection helped shape the tournament’s purpose. It was not a one-time fundraiser. It became a yearly meeting point where companies, charities, volunteers, and families returned with a shared sense of responsibility.
The 2026 program showed the scale of the event. Teams were assigned starting positions across the course, with participants representing many companies and organizations. Hole activities included giveaways, hole-in-one contests, Lebanese food, a Special Olympics putting competition, closest-to-the-pin contests, longest drive, and a beverage tent.
The tournament also recognized the people who made it possible behind the scenes. BMO Financial Group received special recognition as presenting sponsor, with John Keating invited forward during the evening program. Mr. Fares thanked BMO not simply for sponsoring an event, but for investing in the community and helping touch thousands of lives.
He also recognized Tanya, who helped organize the tournament for several years with professionalism, dedication, and close attention to detail. Events of this size depend on visible generosity, but also on invisible work: planning, phone calls, schedules, sponsor coordination, prizes, volunteers, signage, and last-minute problem solving.
Family was another central part of the evening. Mr. Fares thanked his wife Cathy, his children Zana, Maurice, and Monique, their spouses, and his grandchildren for sharing him with the tournament over the years. He gave special recognition to Cathy, who supported the tournament from its earliest days, long before there were larger committees or staff involved. In his words, the tournament was never his alone. It was theirs.
The decision to end the tournament after thirty years was presented not as a loss, but as a choice to close a successful chapter at the right time. Thirty years is a rare milestone for any community fundraiser.
For the Lebanese-Canadian community, the tournament’s legacy is especially meaningful. It reflects a familiar immigrant story: arriving with hope, working hard, building a life, and then giving back to the country and community that became home.
The WM Fares Group Charity Golf Tournament fits that mission clearly. It brought people together across business, culture, charity, and friendship. It showed how one family’s gratitude could grow into a community tradition. It also showed how Lebanese-Canadian leadership in Halifax continues to shape not only buildings and business, but also civic life and charitable giving.
The final putt may have been made, but the tournament’s impact continues through the organizations it supported, the families it helped, and the relationships it strengthened.
After thirty years, the legacy is not only measured in dollars.
It is measured in hope, generosity, and community.
#WMFaresGroup #CharityGolfTournament #CorporateSocialResponsibility #CommunityGiving #CommunityImpact #GivingBack #Philanthropy #LebaneseCanadianCommunity #SpecialOlympicsNovaScotia #EpilepsyAwareness #ShelterMovers #GlenArbourGolfCourse
