Cydney Clanton gets a shower after winning the 2013 Four Winds Invitational at Blackthorn Golf Club. (Photo courtesy SCOTT MILLER)

SOUTH BEND — The Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians announced that it will again be the title sponsor of the Four Winds Invitational at Blackthorn Golf Club in 2014.

The 2013 Four Winds Invitational raised $56,000, which the Pokagon Band donated to Memorial Children’s Hospital in South Bend.

The donation, which is from proceeds of the 2013 Four Winds Invitational, will be used to purchase a neonatal incubator transport unit for Memorial Children’s Hospital’s MedFlight helicopter program.

The 2014 Four Winds Invitational, which will continue to have the largest purse on the Symetra Tour, will be held from June 20 through June 22.

“We are proud to continue as the title sponsor of the Four Winds Invitational and contribute to the future success of the tournament that benefits both the South Bend community and Memorial Children’s Hospital,” said Matt Wesaw, Chairman of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians. “Along with the support of several local sponsors, we are also very proud to have made a donation of $109,500 to Memorial Children’s Hospital over the past two years.”

“Memorial Children’s Hospital serves 22 referral hospitals across Northern Indiana and Southwestern Michigan. In 2012, a total of 769 infants and children were transported to Memorial Children’s Hospital for specialized care, a 29 percent increase from 2011,” said Michaeleen Conlee, Senior Director of Women’s and Children’s Services at Memorial Children’s Hospital. “In the care of our region’s smallest and most fragile infants, time and safety are the two most important priorities. This incubator will allow Memorial Children’s Hospital to provide cutting-edge medical care, at every referral hospital, in half the time as ground transport. This incubator is one of the most important pieces of equipment available for the care of premature infants and will be lifesaving to many.”

“We are excited that the Pokagon Band and its Four Winds Casinos will continue as the sponsor of the Four Winds Invitational. The first two years of the tournament have been a great success as it has quickly become a favorite stop by players on the Tour,” said Tim Firestone, General Manager, Blackthorn Golf Club. “Several of the 144 female golfers taking part in this year’s event also spent time enjoying the local community by touring the area, volunteering at Memorial Children’s Hospital and staying with host families across the area.”