SAVOY, Ill. (WAND) - Illinois men's basketball hall of famer and member of the 1989 "Flyin' Illini", Kendall Gill, hosted his annual Golf Benefit at the University of Illinois golf course on Monday.
2026 marks the 37th year of the charity event, which has benefited children and families of Cunningham Children's Home. In the event's 36th year, sponsors, donors, and Illinois alumni, raised over $50,000 dollars for the cause. Since the benefit first began, more than $900,000 has been donated, benefiting nearly 1,000 children and parents.
"It’s great to see everybody continue to come out to support the outing," Gill said. "We all do this for a great cause in helping children who have been dealt a bad hand in life. Every year, we come back and it’s become a wonderful tradition in mid-July."
Relationships with the Illini community have helped ensure others can benefit from Gill's profile and his desire to give back to those in need of support.
Illini head coach Brad Underwood was in attendance and shared the importance of making connections last, beyond the players who have come through the program.
"It's the beauty of what we do," Underwood said. "The basketball world's a very small network. You might not have personally known somebody, but you meet them and you have some connection through a program, or through a contact, through a Dick Nagy, a Mark Coomes, through whatever it might be. It's amazing how connected you become very quickly. It's relationship-based. I've thrived on that."
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