The First Tee tournament at Lakeview wasn’t really about golf. Sure, there were birdies and long drives and even an eagle or two, but what I carried home had little to do with scorecards. It was about people.
I was paired with three teammates who, on the surface, couldn’t have been more different. First was Don Heishman, a steady presence, a sponsor, and someone who has spent years investing in others through his work and his community. Then there was Chase Snyder, 18 years old, standing right on the edge of adulthood, his drives soaring well past 300 yards as he prepared to head off to Roanoke College on a full golf scholarship. And finally, Santi – just 14 – soft-spoken, polite, deliberate in every step as he prepared for his very first days of high school.
Three lives, three stages. What tied them together wasn’t golf – it was the way each of them spoke about giving back.
Don has coached, encouraged, and supported. Chase spent his summer with First Tee, teaching younger kids, fixing clubs, and working at tournaments. And Santi, who first discovered golf through YouTube videos, told me his dream is to someday return as a coach himself, passing along the skills and respect that First Tee has already instilled in him.
As we made our way around the course, I found myself less interested in how far the drives flew (though, believe me, they flew) and more interested in the small moments. Don talked about his friendships in the game. Chase laughed as he admitted putting “wasn’t his strength” right before sinking a thirty-footer. Santi lined up a putt with a quiet intensity that felt older than his years.
But before the round even began, I noticed the parking lot lined with newer model trucks. To me, that meant contractors, builders, folks who put in a hard day’s work and still carved out time to support First Tee. It was a good sign: people willing to give up a day on the job to help raise money for kids and the community.
The tournament itself reflected that same spirit of service. The JMU men’s golf team showed up – just two days into their new season – hauling bags, greeting players, helping wherever needed. Families came out, local sponsors pitched in, and the community gathered not just to play but to support the next wave of kids who will carry these values forward.
Dinner was no afterthought either. The steak was tender, the green beans outrageous…the best I’ve had in a long while. I missed the mashed potatoes (too busy talking, interviewing, snapping photos), but I’m certain they were just as good.
I didn’t contribute much to the score – we only used one of my drives all day – but that didn’t matter. I sank a few putts, laughed at my topped shots, and mostly asked too many questions.
Because what I wanted to capture wasn’t the number under par. It was this: the way a sponsor, a college-bound golfer, and a freshman-to-be could walk the same fairways, share the same cart paths, and talk about what it means to serve others.
That’s what First Tee is really about. Not the game itself, but the threads it weaves – between generations, between strangers, between people discovering common ground.
Yesterday at Lakeview, I saw those threads pulled tight. And it was beautiful.
