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Local man to honor health care heroes and raise funds at golf tournament

Growing up with siblings who had disabilities, Michael Deauville is more familiar with children’s hospitals than most.

“Even though I wasn’t a patient, I spent a lot of time in the hospital over the years with my siblings,” said Deauville. “I have always been grateful for all they did for me and my family.”

When he moved to the Sacramento area in 2020, Deauville wanted to give back to the local children’s hospital, UC Davis Children’s Hospital, but his plans were derailed when the pandemic hit.

“I was ready to hold a fundraiser and then COVID-19 took things in a whole different direction,” Deauville said. Not only were his plans for a fundraiser interrupted, more importantly, so were the lives of the health care workers he wanted to “pay back.”

Michael Deauville and his girlfriend, UC Davis Children’s Hospital NICU nurse, Kayla Prior.

Deauville is a senior spine specialist for medical technology company Stryker, working within pediatric orthopaedics. He saw firsthand the impact the pandemic had on people he worked with as they battled the COVID-19 virus and faced the unimaginable.

An idea was born. Deauville’s event would raise money for UC Davis Children’s Hospital while at the same time, honoring today’s health care heroes like his girlfriend Kayla Prior, a UC Davis NICU nurse.

Through PlayYellow, a Children’s Miracle Network (CMN) program, and its associated partner Golf Status, Deauville set up a website for an upcoming golf tournament on Nov. 6.

“Chip-Ins for Children’s” includes golf, dinner and a concert at Wildhorse Golf Club in Davis. Attendees can choose to participate in the day on the links or just opt for dinner and the concert. Sponsorships are also available. Donors can purchase packages for health care workers to be able to enjoy the event for free. All proceeds benefit CMN at UC Davis.

“I have been so impressed with how the nurses, doctors and staff have handled the pandemic,” Deauville said. “I want them to know how much we appreciate all they do for us today, just like I am forever grateful to the care teams that helped my family and my siblings all those years ago.”

For more information on how to participate, visit Chip-Ins for Children’s.