AmFam volunteer gives back for reasons beyond golf

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - Most American Family Insurance Championship volunteers follow the game of golf. Five-time volunteer Margaret Draper is not one of them.

“I’ve never held a golf club,” said Draper. “I had no idea what the tournament was all about.”

When she was working at American Family Insurance, Draper signed up with no hesitation to volunteer for the golf tournament in 2016.

Though she doesn’t love golf, Draper does love her granddaughter, who received care several years ago as a toddler at American Family Children’s Hospital.

“She was in an accident and was taken by helicopter to the hospital,” remembered Draper. “She was in an induced coma for two weeks in the pediatric ICU.”

Though it was a stressful time, Draper says the doctors and nurses took incredible care of her granddaughter.

“They’re angels. They really are,” she said. “It’s one of the reasons I try and volunteer as many hours as I can.”

Draper says her granddaughter is now a teenager and has made a full recovery.

“We knew we were in the best of hands. We knew she was going to heal,” said Draper.

Though she doesn’t volunteer to enjoy the golf or watch the pros in action, Draper says she loves getting to meet fans of the game.

“They’re excited about golf. They’re supportive of the charities,” she said. “It’s just so great for me to be able to talk to them, make sure that they have a good experience, that they’re happy, and that they’ve been taken care of so they’ll come back here next year.”

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