Garton Family Charity

10/12/2026

We are excited to announce Mr. Sunni Wallace as our “Everyday Hero” winner for the month of October! Sunni will be receiving a free pint of delicious gelato from Dolce at the Strand and a free dirty soda from The Sugar Social each week this month, and will be featured on Wadsworth Community Radio 97.1 FM & On the Web!

Mr. Sunni Wallace has dedicated his career and personal life to supporting local youth and building a stronger community. For the past 17 years, he has served as a Physical Education Teacher with Barberton City Schools, promoting health, teamwork, and wellness among young students. His commitment to community extends well beyond the classroom. An active member of his local church alongside his family, he also invests countless hours back into youth sports as both a baseball umpire and basketball referee, helping foster fair play, mentorship, and sportsmanship on the court and field.

​Sunni holds a Bachelor of Science from the University of Akron and a Master’s Degree in Athletic Administration from Kent State University. He resides in Akron with his wife, Amber, and their three daughters, Christiana, Zoe, and Sunnie. When he isn’t teaching or officiating, he treasures spending time with his family, supporting his daughters in their own athletic activities, and collecting Star Wars and Transformers action figures.

Thank you, Mr. Sunni Wallace, for your service to our community!

09/30/2026

We are excited to share that we have made a generous donation to The Dale & Joanne Widmer Foundation as part of our fundraising from our 10th Annual Christine Garton Memorial Softball Tournament. Thank you to those who played for and supported this wonderful cause!

09/23/2026

We are so fortunate to have support each year from our friends at Texas Roadhouse in Stow! ❤️

09/14/2026

Thank you to everyone who helped make our 10th annual event a success! Together, we raised $9,100!

Thank you to our players and attendees for your donations and for spending your day with us. We are fortunate to have such a wonderful group of people who come out each year to have fun together and support our causes.

Thank you to our sponsors On the spot heating and cooling and electrical llc, The Amanda Ondrey Team, M.C. Real Estate, and Martin AIJS for your support of our event. We are so thankful to have such incredible support in our community! Thank you to Texas Roadhouse in Stow for donating food for our attendees and for coming out to join us. Thank you to both Texas Roadhouse and Michael Gibson and his family for bringing mascot fun for our participants as well!

Thank you to our Garton Family Charity leadership team and our event volunteers for helping to make sure everything ran smoothly on the day of the event. We are lucky to have such a dedicated group! Thank you to the City of Wadsworth for making Weatherstone Park available to us and to their grounds crew for prepping the fields in the morning.

Thank you to all of our silent auction donors for generously providing so many great items for our participants to bid on:

Akron Art Museum
​Akron Symphony Orchestra
​Akron Zips Athletics
​Akron Zoo
​All Fired Up Akron
​Barlett Cook Flower Shoppe
​Baylor Beach Park
​Casa Del Rio
​Chick-fil-A Medina
​Cincinnati Reds
​Cleveland Charge
​Cleveland Guardians
​Cleveland Monsters
​COSI - Center of Science and Industry
​Dayton Flyers Athletics
​Dewey's Pizza - Fairlawn
​Fun 'n' Stuff
​Galaxy Restaurant
​Gervasi
​Graeter's Ice Cream
​GV Art & Design
​Hocking Hills Adventures
​Holden Forests & Gardens
​Holiday World & Splashin' Safari
​Homage
​Idlewild & SoakZone
​Ignite Brewing Company
​Kennywood
​Kendra Scott
​Lake Erie Crushers
​Majestic Meadows Alpacas & Boutique
​Memphis Kiddie Park
​Mitchell's Homemade Ice Cream
​Mountaineer Casino Resort
​Music Box Supper Club
​Nate Bargatze
​Nothing Bundt Cakes
​On the Spot Heating and Cooling
​Peanut Shoppe of Akron
​Pioneer Waterland & Dry Fun Park
​Ramseyer Farms
​Roosters Wings - Canton
​Snow Trails
​SportsVille
​Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens
​Sweets & Geeks
​The Farm at Walnut Creek
​The Mansfield Reformatory
​Toledo Rockets Athletics
​Waldameer & Water World

Thank you to Dolce at the Strand, The Sugar Social, and Wadsworth Community Radio 97.1 FM & On the Web as well for your year-round support of everything we do.

Funds raised will go toward our Holiday Cheer program, The Dale & Joanne Widmer Foundation, and Blood Cancer United. We are thrilled to support such great causes and know it will help so many people!

09/02/2026

We are excited to announce Shawn Starcher as our “Everyday Hero” winner for the month of September! Shawn will be receiving a free pint of delicious gelato from Dolce at the Strand and a free dirty soda from The Sugar Social each week this month, and will be featured on Wadsworth Community Radio 97.1 FM & On the Web!

Shawn is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies at Muskingum University, where he has been a faculty member since 2019. Beyond his work in the classroom, Shawn is a dedicated advocate for mental health awareness. He launched Muskingum's chapter of Active Minds - a student-led organization focused on increasing mental health awareness and normalizing conversations around mental illness - and actively serves as its faculty advisor. His scholarly research aligns closely with this advocacy, exploring how individuals communicate, disclose, and manage private information regarding their mental health with others.

Outside of his work, Shawn enjoys spending time with his wife, Lori, their daughter, Marsya, and her fiancé, Steven.

Thank you, Shawn, for your service to our community!

08/25/2026

For those who participated in this year's 10th Annual Christine Garton Memorial Softball Tournament Presented by On the Spot Heating & Cooling, we'd love to hear your feedback!

Survey Link:

Thank you for attending the 10th Annual Christine Garton Memorial Softball Event! We would appreciate you answering a few questions to assist us planning future potential events.

08/16/2026

Thank you to everyone who participated in our 2026 Silent Auction!

We will be reaching out soon via email on how you can provide payment and pick up your items.

08/16/2026

One hour remains in our 2026 Silent Auction!

www.32auctions.com/GFC2026

08/16/2026

Our 2026 Silent Auction ends today! Get those final bids in!

08/16/2026

***Featured Auction Item***

On the Spot Heating, Cooling and Electrical is donating a new furnace plus installation to be included in our 2026 Silent Auction!

Bid on this item and so much more at www.32auctions.com/GFC2026 - the auction ends today!