By Ed Letsinger

Impact, partner and develop.  These three words were chosen by The First Tee to define their organization and they have certainly lived by those words over the years.

Impact because First Tee is having a positive impact on the lives of young people of all backgrounds.  Minorities represent half of its participants and First Tee is committed to making ethnic inclusiveness a priority.  Partner because after beginning with the aid of Shell Oil Company, The First Tee has established a vast network of corporate partners that offer resources, products and services to The First Tee and its Chapters.  Develop because The First Tee develops golf learning facilities and helps develop the full potential of young people.

Simply put, the mission of First Tee is “to impact the lives of young people by providing learning facilities and educational programs that promote character development and life-enhancing values through the game of golf.”

The local golfing community will get a chance to learn more about this organization and its on-going initiatives firsthand in 2006 with the newly-formed The First Tee of Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky Chapter.  The Chapter is under the governance of a 15-member Board of Directors and includes an Advisory Board of key community leaders/sponsors chaired by Charlie Mechem, former LPGA Commissioner.

A successful four-week pilot program launched last summer at Avon Fields along with all the necessary steps that had to be taken in creating a 501 (c3) non-profit company along with many other business matters was the springboard to First Tee awarding its 173^rd Chapter.

“We’re in this for the kids,” says Larry Kellam, a retired Procter & Gamble director who is serving as Board Vice-President and Fundraising Co-Chair.  “First and foremost it’s an educational program that will hopefully help give kids a chance at a good start in life.  If we happen to make a future Tiger Woods then that would be wonderful but what we’re really teaching is life skills.”

The First Tee target audience is kids ages 8-18 with particular outreach to “at risk” children from inner city environments.  Initial participants in The First Tee of Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky will not pay for the programs, and will also be provided incentives to play on their own through reduced green fees and free range balls at Cincinnati Recreation Commission facilities.  Funding is expected to be raised locally, through matching funds from First Tee, or through National Grants.  All locally raised money stays locally (no National Organization appropriation).  That process has already begun in earnest, with an “upscale” golf outing hosted by Heritage Club on May 1 already sold-out, according to Kellam.

Some of the organization’s goals include establishing at least five First Tee facilities by the end of 2008 with the capability of introducing 1,000-plus young people a year to the game of golf.  Initial facilities are projected to be Reeves and Avon Field, with additional facilities in Northern Kentucky and Hamilton County planned.  The organization also plans to pilot a school program with the International College Preparatory Academy (Charter School).

“It’s one of the premier national programs for juniors and they do a great job with it,” says Steve Pacella, regional manager for Billy Casper Golf which oversees the seven CRC golf courses including Reeves and Avon Fields.  “It’s a great program for any kid who wants to go through it.  Golf is used as a conduit but there’s a lot deeper message being taught than just golf.”

The initial roll-out program and curriculum includes five levels of achievement (Target, Par, Birdie, Eagle, Master) designed to develop greater self-esteem, civic responsibility and confidence in tandem with golf abilities.  The program begins with an introduction to First Tee and then proceeds through levels that emphasize communication skills, goal setting, and planning, to name a few.

In 1997, the World Golf Foundation created The First Tee to introduce young people of all backgrounds to the game of golf and its inherently positive values, from respect and integrity to individual responsibility and sportsmanship.  Since its inception, The First Tee has opened over 250 golf-learning facilities in 44 states and five international locations, and has introduced the game of golf and its values to over 670,000 participants.

As The First Tee has continued to evolve, so has its mission with the introduction of curriculum that also includes The First Tee Life Skills Experience, The Scholars Program and The First Tee Coach Program.  Today, The First Tee is recognized as one of the premier youth character-education programs in the country.

“I’m extremely enthusiastic and I think that Cincinnati is going to be great for the First Tee program,” says Briner.  “The community has been extremely welcoming and supportive and we’re just getting started.”