The recent Tunnel to Towers Foundation golf tournament at Mission Hills Country Club was much more than just a game.

It was about honoring and giving back to American heroes.

“This is our job, to help those that protect us at home and abroad,” said Tom McDonough with the Tunnel to Towers Foundation – a non-profit that started to honor fallen New York City firefighter Stephen Sillar who lost his life while saving others during the September 11^th, 2001, terrorist attacks.

“(Sillar) was on his way home to play in a golf outing with his three brothers when he heard on the scanner that a plane had hit the world trade center,” McDonough said. “Steve grabbed all his gear, drove to the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel, and started to run the 1.7 miles through the tunnel. Those turned out to be his final footsteps, but he was able to take part in a rescue effort that saved thousands and thousands of people’s lives that day.”

Over the past 20 years, the Tunnel to Towers Foundation has expanded its fundraising efforts nationwide with a mission of providing financial support to the families of first responders and military veterans in times of need.

“We pay off homes of first responders lost in the line of duty that have young children,” McDonough said. “We pay off mortgages of Gold Star families. We also build homes for catastrophic-injured veterans.”

Recently, the Tunnel to Towers Foundation held its inaugural celebrity golf tournament at Mission Hills Country Club in the city of Rancho Mirage.

This event brought together golf enthusiasts from across the country to raise awareness and raise funds for the families of those who risked their lives in the line of duty.

“I’m feeling a lot of patriotism, a lot of gratitude,” said former professional Wally Joyner, who helped host the tournament.

“Why am I here,” asked actor Jonathan Banks. “How can you not be?”

To date, Tunnel to Towers has committed more than $500 million to American heroes, making sure their legacies and families are never forgotten.

If you’d like to donate to the Tunnel to Towers foundation, visit www.t2t.org for more information

This story was written and reported by Kai Beech.

Celebrity golf tournament raises funds, awareness for fallen American heroes