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February 7, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Bob Donovan 774-430-9092 // bobd@ouimet.org
Ouimet Fund Honors Van Faasen with Spirit of Golf Award
NORTON, MA – The Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund will award its sixth “Spirit of Golf” Award to
William C. Van Faasen, Chairman Emeritus of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts this year. A
presentation, originally scheduled to be made at a banquet at the Sheraton Boston Hotel on Monday,
February 9, 2015, has been canceled due to impending weather.
“Although the storm forecasts forced us to cancel the actual banquet, we are still very grateful to Bill
Van Faasen and wish to recognize all he does. He has been a great business leader in Boston, is one of
the most respected people in golf, and is deeply committed to the inner-city. He exemplifies everything
this award is about, and we are so proud to honor him this year. Corporate sponsorships and individual
donations have created a major endowed scholarship in Bill’s name for inner-city students within the
Ouimet Fund,” said Ouimet Fund President Gregory J. Gailius. He went on to explain that the “Spirit of
Golf” Award honors individuals who love the game of golf and are deeply committed to charitable and
community support. The Award was established to recognize those who have given back to their
communities in the spirit of the classic motto, “From what golf has given you, let us give something back
to golf.”
Mr. Van Faasen is regarded as an innovative and leading member of the health insurance industry,
having spent nearly 25 years in senior leadership positions with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts
after spending 20 years at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Michigan. He served as BCBSMA’s President
and CEO for over a decade and is currently its Chair Emeritus.
Bill has been engaged in numerous civic and community activities since his arrival in the Boston area in
1990. He has served as a Board Member and Board Chairperson of the Greater Boston Chamber of
Commerce, the United Way of Massachusetts Bay, the Boston Minuteman Council of the Boy Scouts of
America, the Boston Private Industry Council, the Initiative for a New Economy (INE), and the Blue Cross
and Blue Shield of Massachusetts Foundation. Bringing his expertise to the business community, he is
currently Lead Outside Director of the Liberty Mutual Group Board of Directors and serves as a Board
Member of Eversource Energy. He has served as Director of numerous other for-profit and not-forprofit companies.
“I am deeply honored to be recognized by the Ouimet Fund with the Spirit of Golf Award,” Mr. Van
Faasen said. “What really gets me excited is that all proceeds will go to further The Fund’s inner-city
scholarship program. We are much a product of our opportunities as our abilities. We really need to
help create better opportunities for these kids, that’s what tonight was all about.”
In the golfing world, Bill has served on the Executive Committee of the Massachusetts Golf Association
since 2005. He was a driving force and first Chairperson of Black and White on Green, an initiative to
unite leaders of the business community with minority business leaders. This program is regarded as
the predecessor to the City of Boston’s Summer Golf Management venture which the Ouimet Fund has
collaborated with since 1996 in developing its Boston inner-city scholarship program. He has played in
many MGA events including the State Amateur, Senior Amateur, Four-Ball, Senior Four-Ball, Father and
Son, and this year, the Super Senior. He served as General Chairman of the 2010 USGA Curtis Cup held
at the Essex County Club, and has also served as Golf Chair at Essex. In addition to Essex County Club, he
is also a member at Old Sandwich Golf Club, The Loxahatchee Club and the Medalist Golf Club. He also
belongs to the Hickory Shafts, the New England Senior Golf Association, the United States Senior Golf
Association, and the Society of Seniors. He has played in the Lesley Cup as a member of the
Massachusetts Team since 2001. He was also recently elected to the Ouimet Fund’s Board of Directors.
The Spirit of Golf Award is the latest recognition of Mr. Van Faasen’s leadership and contribution to the
community. He is a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award in Health Care from Health Care For
All, the Maimonides Award from the Anti-Defamation League, the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award from
the Boy Scouts of America, the New England Council’s New Englander of the Year Award, and recipient
of the Distinguished Bostonian from the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce. In recognition of his
contributions to the community, BCBSMA established the William C. Van Faasen Community Service
Sabbatical Program, allowing one BCBSMA employee per year a leave of absence to work for a
charitable organization.
Prior recipients of the Spirit of Golf Award are John McCafferty in 2003, Bud and Pat Roche in 2004, John
Hamill in 2005, Jerry York in 2007 and Richard F. Connolly, Jr. in 2008. Presenting sponsors for this
year’s event were Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Liberty Mutual Insurance and Northeast
Utilities. Andrew Dreyfus, David H. Long, Thomas J. May and Richard M. Reilly served as Co-Chairs.
The Francis Ouimet Scholarship Fund was founded in 1949 and, since that time, has awarded $28.1
Million to students who have worked at least two years in service to golf in Massachusetts. Ouimet
Scholars work as caddies or in pro shop or course superintendent operations. The Scholarship is a needbased, four-year renewable award. In 2014-2015, The Fund will award $1.6 Million to approximately
300 students. Over 5,200 students have received Ouimet Scholarships since its founding, with many
going on to outstanding positions of leadership in business and professional careers. The Ouimet Fund
is one of the largest independent scholarship in New England and the 2nd largest “caddie fund” in the
U.S. It is a 501(c) (3) organization and is considered the Golf Charity of Massachusetts.
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