INDIANAPOLIS — At Eagle Creek Golf Course, hundreds of people teed off in the 16th Annual Eric Medlen Memorial Golf Tournament.
Medlen was an NHRA funny car driver. He died in 2007 in a testing accident. He was good friends with Katie and Morgan Lucas, who now host the golf tournament.
Each year, they donate the proceeds to Peyton Manning Children's Hospital.
"With honoring Eric's legacy, he loved children and he wanted to help children as much as he could," said Katie Lucas. "Peyton Manning Children's Hospital and Ascension St. Vincent has such a special place in our heart."
This year, the tournament will benefit Ascension St. Vincent's new Women's and Children's Hospital. The Level 1 Trauma Center will put NICU and maternal care in the same place and have 109 NICU beds. It will be an added resource for the whole state.
"We will receive and care for patients from all over the state. Again, some of the sickest of the sick will be transferred here. It will help us help those individuals thrive and maybe have a chance when they wouldn’t have had other wise," said Kevin Speer, CEO of Ascension St. Vincent.
The new women and children's tower is set to open in November. Since 2008, the golf tournament has raised $1.4 million.
