Fundraising is hard...

Or, a plea to help support the First Tee of Greater Detroit

This summer, through the No Laying Up-affiliated community of golfers in Michigan, I’ve been able to connect with the Program Director for the First Tee of Greater Detroit and play golf with him a few times. It was through this connection that the First Tee - Greater Detroit 100-hole golf marathon came on my radar. I’ve seen plenty of golf marathons over time through various social media follows, but this was my first direct connection with an upcoming marathon, and I decided to jump in, mostly thinking about how I would enjoy the mental and physical challenge of completing the 100 holes. The fundraising aspect was a bit of an afterthought for me, if I’m being honest.

Well, as Talor Gooch would say, “I’m not that smart.”

I was previously involved in the First Tee of Greater Chicago as a program ambassador, and I knew from my experience there that my fundraising network was pretty flimsy, to say the least, but that was quite a few years ago and of course I must be an older and wiser person now, and therefore better at fundraising, right?

Rather than admitting that I stink at it, I’ll just say that man, it’s been a bad year for inflation, hasn’t it? Or maybe the Covid golf boom is ending as people are social distancing less and dealing with life responsibilities more? Who knows, but the report back is that donations are down across the board compared to past years.

So I will step out of my comfort zone and make a direct ask here. This event is an important one for the goals of the First Tee, as less than 1% of revenue comes from participant fees. One of the major appeals of the First Tee is its affordability, and that they don’t turn anyone away. It’s been a good couple of years for Michigan golf, so let’s make sure that growth is sustainable by introducing the next generation of Detroit-area golfers to the game.

As Talor Gooch might also say, “I’m just here to grow the game, man”.

You can make a pledge this week to my campaign by clicking here. No amount is too small. I appreciate all of you, and hope to see you all on the course this year (that’s right, there is still 2.5 months of golf season left in Michigan, as far as I”m concerned)!