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Monica Blake – Lessons in Leadership

At First Tee, we guide kids to strengthen what’s inside and put it into action because strong character, inner strength and resilience is needed now more than ever. This month we are talking to leaders within our Network about their experiences and key lessons learned over the course of their careers.

Monica Blake, First Tee – Central Arkansas

What is your current role at First Tee and what is the most rewarding part of your job?

My name is Monica Blake and I am the Executive Director of First Tee-Central Arkansas. The most rewarding part of my job is making a positive impact on the lives of the youth and families we serve in Central Arkansas. As the Executive Director I’m able to serve as the voice of our participants and advocate on their behalf. I am also a certified First Tee coach and I have been intentional about staying involved in the coaching process. I believe that in order to be a successful leader it’s important that I stay connected to our participants and our mission. As the Executive Director, it’s essential to be a good steward of our donors and sponsoring donations and it’s very rewarding to see those contributions directly impact the youth that we serve.

This month we’re celebrating Black History Month and lifting up voices of Black participants, coaches and leaders exploring what it means to be a leader. What does leadership mean to you?

I believe that leadership isn’t about a title or position that you hold, but that it’s about the difference you make in someone’s life. As the leader of First Tee- Central Arkansas it’s important that I’m putting everyone within our organization in a position to not only be successful, but to facilitate an environment where each participant, coach, and volunteer aspire to be the change they seek in the lives of the youth that we serve.

Did you always know you wanted to be in a leadership role? Can you share a little bit about your journey and how you’ve developed into your current role?

My journey with First Tee began in an entry level role as a volunteer coach in 2012. It was in this role, I realized the value that each position within the organization holds, and how it’s sometimes the person who’s the initial point of contact, that can make the biggest impact on a participant. As I reflect on my growth in the organization, and how my career has progressed, I was extremely fortunate for the opportunity to serve as a volunteer. It was instrumental in laying a foundation of what it means to serve and how to incorporate service into my leadership style. I quickly moved into the role of a paid coach and from there I was promoted to Program Director, where I served for 6 years. Being the Program Director allowed me to connect with the curriculum we were teaching and our mission as an organization and how it impacts each participant. In 2019, I became the first female African-American Executive Director of First Tee-Central Arkansas. I know it was every role that I’ve served, which helped prepare me for this amazing opportunity within this organization and has put me in the greatest position to be successful .

Who were some of the strong voices or mentors in your life that inspired you?

Harold Banks has been a mentor to not only myself, but to countless golfers throughout the Central Arkansas area. Harold was always willing to share his knowledge, skills and expertise with everyone in the golf community. He always had a positive attitude and took a personal interest in mentoring the next generation. Harold was instrumental in advancing black golfers in Little Rock and often his advice extended far beyond the golf course. He was respected by golfers throughout Central Arkansas and left a lasting impact on golfers for generations to come. The impact Harold has made on our community is something that truly inspires and motivates me to become a mentor and leader in the community.

Can you give an example of a challenge you have faced in your career and how have you worked to overcome it?

Having to lead during a pandemic was certainly a challenge and continues to be each day. One important lesson I’ve learned is how to constantly adapt to ever changing circumstances and continue to modify and adjust as necessary. Flexibility and the power of teamwork are key pillars I have to lean on. Together, as an organization, we were able to navigate through our new circumstances and now we’re in a position to advance our organization even further. We were forced to evaluate our operations through a different lens, and I feel programming has benefited as a result.

How does or can First Tee play a role in bringing more diversity to our game?

First Tee has the opportunity to play a fundamental role in increasing diversity in golf, especially in Central Arkansas. The mission of our organization has always been to introduce our programming to underserved communities and now we have the opportunity to lead the charge in bringing diversity and inclusion into the game of golf. This is done by elevating black voices within the community and developing a plan to identify the disconnections and expanding opportunities for minorities. As an organization it is our responsibility to ensure that all participants are having an equitable experience.

What advice do you have for young people entering the job market determined to make a career for themselves?

My advice for young people entering the job market would be to find something that you are passionate about and where you can make a difference. Golf has always played a significant role in my life and as I’ve grown older so has the desire to help people in my community. I’m very fortunate to now serve in a role where I get to blend these two together. It is important to make an impact on the world around you and to help those who are in need.

Angela “Coach Angel” Whorton, First Tee — Greater Akron

Coach Angel has been an educator for 15 years. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Elementary Education from Hampton University, where she attended on a full NCAA Division I scholarship helping lead her team in March Madness. After graduation, Coach Angel traveled extensively and was invited to speak on diversity and educational practices. She began her teaching career in Turkey, teaching English as a Second Language before going back home, to Akron, Ohio where she is currently an educator at the Lebron James IPromise school. Coach Angel was introduced to First Tee 8 years ago when her son, John Ramon, joined the program. She joined in not long after and has been coaching at First Tee — Greater Akron for 7 years. “I feel it is important to stay involved in the First Tee to offer the kids in my urban community the opportunity to play a sport that they may have not felt was in their realm of abilities. When we begin working with these athletes we open a whole new world for them while developing their character through the Core Values to instill a solid foundation for success. I also feel it is essential to have representation in the world of golf and being able to interact and develop friendships and perspectives with people in the golf community that may have otherwise never built a relationship with someone in the Black community such as myself.” Coach Angel is just one of the many inspirational coaches across our network and we invite you to learn more about her journey and thoughts on leadership in the video below.

First Tee Alumni Compete on the APGA Tour

We believe that golf provides a powerful vehicle to help kids build inner strength and life enhancing skills they can take to everything they do. Joseph Dent, Marcellus Dillard and Joey Stills are First Tee alumni using these life lessons as they compete on the APGA Tour, a launching pad for African Americans and minority golfers to compete and make their way to the PGA TOUR. The three alumni shared their experiences through First Tee and how it’s empowered them to develop their character as they pursue their goals.

Quick 9 on Leadership

By: Ana Herndon, First Tee — Metro Atlanta At First Tee, we encourage kids and teens to learn from one another and their mentors, empowering them to make a difference in their communities. By fostering these environments, golf becomes more than a game, it becomes a springboard for building up leaders. Ana Herndon, participant from First Tee – Metro Atlanta, took some time to share with us how First Tee helped her build these skills and why being a leader is important.

1. What is a leader?

Someone who works to ensure the success of others. One of my favorite quotes by the Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu said, “A leader is best when people barely know he exists. When his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.” This quote sets the standards for my goals as a leader. I aspire to be a great leader, one who is humble and works well with others.

2. Why is leadership important?

It is a critical skill. A good leader builds people up and helps them unlock their fullest potential. You are like a candle lighting other candles so that they can shine where they go out into the world.

3. How old do you need to be to be a leader?

You are never too young or old to be a leader. It is more important that you care about what you are leading in rather than your age.

4. What three words come to mind when you think of a great leader?

Humble, diplomatic, and kind-hearted.

5. Who is a leader in your life?

My first golf coach taught me not just the fundamentals of golf, the grip, the stance, the posture but also what it means to have a go-to team. Being a leader means being determined, honest, humble, and kind. I use those core values he taught me not just in sports but in my academics and the relationships I have with others. Golf has been more than a game but a way of life. The First Tee program has built my foundation: not just as a good golfer, but a better person.

6. Who do leaders learn from?

Their peers. You cannot humanly expect to know everything. There will always be someone who understands it better than you. As a leader, it is important to find people’s strengths and embrace them.

7. Who can you go to for leadership advice?

Having a mentor is crucial in becoming a leader. When you have mentors that mirror yourself, you feel as though you could achieve what they have. To me, you cannot be what you have never seen.

8. How do leaders overcome challenges?

You have to be willing to ask for help. When I founded a new club, it was a challenge balancing being an effective leader and seeking help. I did not fathom how difficult it would be to start a club from the ground up. If I wanted this to be successful, I would have to ask for help, and it does not discredit my ability to lead.

9. What can you do that makes you a leader?

Invest in things that you are passionate about and pursue them! You will naturally find those that have a similar passion and will follow your lead. I know it might seem intimidating at first, but a leader is not someone with an absence of fear but leads despite it.

Spring Break Golf Camp 2017

Registration for The First Tee of Greater Akron’s Spring Break Golf Camp is now open! This 3-Day Camp between April 18th and 20th will be run by our PGA Professional Jimmy Beers with the assistance of local PGA Professionals from Northern Ohio. For complete details, Download the Golf Camp Flyer.

Putting with Police

This is a new program we implemented during the 2015 season as a way for our participants to hang out with local police in a friendly atmosphere. During our PLAYer class, several area police, sheriff, and highway patrol came down in uniform in their cruisers to meet our participants. They spoke with our golfers about safety in life, gave the kids a tour of their patrol cruisers and had a fun competition of “Putting with the Police” & “Chipping with the Cops”. They spent the better part of two hours with our junior golfers and made quite the impact in our participant’s lives. We plan on making this an annual event down here at The First Tee of Akron!

We would like to say Thank You to The Akron Police, Ohio State Highway Patrol & Summit County Sheriff Department for sending some officers down to Mud Run for this very special event.

Renee Powell Inspires First Tee Kids

Bill Powell and his daughter, Renee’, shared something more than lineage and a last name. Both shared a love of golf. Both excelled at it. Both overcame the sting of racial prejudice to reach their goals through perseverance. Dr. Renee’ Powell shared her story as the featured speaker at a recent gathering of the Akron Roundtable. Among those in the audience was a group of elementary and middle school girls who are involved in the First Tee of Akron. They heard Dr. Powell recount how her father purchased 78 acres of land in East Canton in Stark County in 1946 and planned to build a golf course. Two years later, the nine-hole Clearview Golf Club was opened. And Bill Powell wanted it known that it was opened to the public after he was denied access to many golf courses because he was an African-American, and it was open to people of all races and ethnicity. During her address, Dr. Powell noted how she learned from the example of her father; that he taught her more than the game of golf. He taught her to work for what you wanted and a person can achieve anything if they want it badly enough and was willing to work hard enough to make it happen. Dr. Powell wanted to be a professional golfer. She made it happen. But it came at a cost. She was introduced to the same bias that her father experienced when she became the second African-American to play on the Ladies Professional Golf Association tour in the late 1960’s. Steadfast, she competed on the LPGA Tour until 1980 when she left the tour and embarked on a mission that resonates with the objectives of The First Tee both nationally and locally. Dr. Powell traveled the world teaching the game of golf until 1988 when she returned to the United States to teach the game to inner-city children. Her work resulted in an Honorary Doctor of Laws by the University of St. Andrew’s and she became just the seventh women to be made a member of St. Andrew’s Country Club, the home of golf in Scotland. In attendance to witness it all was her father. “Is there anyone you can think of that embodies the work of First Tee more than Dr. Powell?” asked Frank Stams, the Executive Director of First Tee of Akron. “She not only extends the reach of the game of golf, but she teaches how the game mirrors the way one should live their life away from the game.” That is the central theme of The First Tee. It is an educational program that asks its participants to adhere to the program’s Nine Core Values: Confidence, Courtesy, Honesty, Integrity, Judgement, Perseverance, Respect, Responsibility and Sportsmanship. First Tee Akron is based at Mud Run Golf Club on S. Hawkins Avenue in Akron. The organization is opening registration for the 2016 year. Children aged 6 to 17 are encouraged to participate. To register, visit the website at www.firstteeakron.org to register online. dscn12042

“We Are Marshall” Coach Addresses First Tee Crowd

With a blend of humor, humility and honesty, collegiate Hall of Fame coach and administrator Jack Lengyel delivered the keynote speech at a recent banquet at Firestone Country Club supporting The First Tee of Akron. A crowd of 200 attended the annual Executive Dinner. Lengyel recounted his days as a student and football player at The University of Akron where he played with local legends John Cistone, Mario Russo and Frank Stams, Sr., the father of First Tee Executive Director Frank Stams, Jr., himself an All-American defensive end at Notre Dame. Upon graduation, Lengyel embarked on a football coaching career that would eventually lead him to a university in West Virginia touched by tragedy. After stints at Akron, Heidelberg College and Cornell University, Lengyel landed the head coaching position at Wooster College in 1968. He remained there until 1970. Then fate intervened. “I came home after a game. I was laying on the couch, digesting what happened and starting to get my mind set on preparing for the next game,” said Lengyel. “Then, a report came on the television. It said that an airplane carrying the Marshall University football team had crashed, killing everyone on board.” Lengyel felt compelled to help. He called the university to offer his services. At first, he was told the university hadn’t decided whether to continue the football program. Soon afterward, though, Marshall University President Don Dedmon and Athletic Director Joe McMullen made the courageous decision to re-build the program, and they set about finding a new coach. “I wasn’t their first choice,” said Lengyel. “In fact, I wasn’t their second, third or fourth choice. But, I finally got the call.” With only four remaining players, Lengyel went about the daunting task of not only re-building the football team but, in the process, the spirit of the town of Huntington, which passionately embraced its college football team. It was at this point in his remarks that Lengyel drew parallels between the undertaking he faced and the mission of The First Tee, an educational program designed to teach youth between the ages of 6 to 17 character-building skills through the game of golf. Lengyel pointed to the bedrock of the First Tee mission to have youth embrace the organization’s 9 Core Values: Confidence, Courtesy, Honesty, Integrity, Judgement, Perseverance, Respect, Responsibility and Sportsmanship. “There are many of the qualities of the Nine Core Values that we had to employ to get to where we wanted to be, to field a team against the odds.” But Marshall was able to field a team, complete with freshmen, baseball players, soccer players, basketball players and walk-ons. It even managed to win its second game back, a 15-13, last- play victory over Xavier. The struggle and the eventual triumph was featured in the 2006 film, “We Are Marshall” starring Matthew McConaughey portraying Lengyel. “I commend The First Tee of Akron for reaching out to young people and teaching them that they can accomplish anything they want if they want it badly enough.” lengylproclamation_opt