When Skylar Friedman’s mother went in for a routine ultrasound check before he was born, she wasn’t expecting to get the news that her baby was facing a life-threatening condition. “It was supposed to be a happy memory of finding out if I was a boy or a girl,” Friedman told The New York Post. Doctors found an abnormal mass in the right lower lobe of his lungs. The mass put him at risk of a heart attack. “It was a very rare condition that I had. So it was probably the first time they had ever seen it,” said Friedman.

When he was just 5 months old, Friedman’s family traveled from their Long Island home to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia for life-saving surgery. There, doctors removed the bottom portion of his lung. The surgery was a success, with Friedman’s connection with the hospital continuing as he goes back twice a year for checkups for asthma and other health conditions. The kindness he has received from the hospital inspired Skylar to do more, who had grown into a golfing whizz, inspired him to do more.

He approached his golf trainer, Adam Laird, about ways he could give back to the hospital. Laird raised $17,000 for the hospital through a 24-hour golf marathon challenge at North Shore Country Club in Glen Head. After that, the donations continued to pour in. Now 17 and a member of the varsity golf team at Portledge School, Friedman is hoping to do even more. He started a remote “100 Putt Challenge” last year that he hopes will enable his fundraising efforts to go nationwide. Participants pledge a certain amount of money for each 6-foot putt they sink out of 100. It’s something that can be done just about anywhere. To date, Friedman has raised $66,000 through the challenge, with his other years of fundraising bringing that total to over $700,000.

“They saved me, so it’s my duty to return the favor,” said a grateful Friedman. Over 1,000 donors are participating in this year’s challenge, with participants playing in twelve different states. “Giving back, it feels like my purpose. If I can reach one person with my story, then it is all worth it,” said Friedman.