Opening The Door To Opportunity

This article is the fifth in a series celebrating 10 years and $50 million in USGA grants.


January 31, 2007

By Blair D. Bodine, USGA

He is known as "The Godfather" of Fresno, Calif., area junior golf.  After 60 years of promoting junior golf and youth tournaments, has garnered an impressive lot of godchildren in the process. Since its inception in 1992, the Valley Junior Golf Foundation (VJGF) - a USGA supported program - has reached more than 1,500 youths per year.

"I see golf as a catalyst to teaching all the good things, like honesty, integrity and respect," said the 86-year-old .

The VJGF offers free golf clinics to students in the local public school system. Kids that show considerable interest in the game are encouraged to attend subsequent lessons. 

seeks to bring golf to all youth who might not otherwise have the chance to play, even when they are initially unreceptive to the discipline of the game. 

"Discipline is taught through kindness and understanding," said . "You always find jewels if you look hard enough for them."

Sometimes didn't have far to look; sometimes they found him.  In 1997, Van Le, then 15, knocked on ' front door.  She had heard about the golf programs that were taking place in her own neighborhood. 

The demure Le had never played before. got her into a clinic, and Le later became a graduate of the Fresno-Greater San Joaquin Valley Junior Golf Foundation.

It seems as if was always there to open the door.  Economically disadvantaged youth that enter the program are given a free set of golf clubs, a bag, golf balls and even golf shoes.  However, once involved in VJGF, the participants have to show their commitment to the program.  , a former schoolteacher and principal, requires that all participants' grades are tracked.  Students are not allowed to participate if their academic performance declines.

Making the grade was never a problem for Le.  In high school she graduated first in her class.  She wrote her college admissions essay on the impact that golf had on her life.  The topic served her well.  Le was accepted to Stanford University on a scholarship that VJGF helped her secure.  In a community where 75 percent of the students live near or below the poverty line, attending such a prestigious university seems unachievable. But not to Le.

In 2003, just before she graduated from with honors, Le looked back on the surreal impact that the junior golf program had on her life, calling it "a sort of Cinderella story." 

Like countless youth, VJGF supplied her with instruction, equipment, scholarships to golf camps, and yes, even shoes.  But ultimately, it was the intangible things that really made a difference.

"Golf provided me with the little push I needed to get out of my shell," Le wrote. "My approach to life has changed.  I stand with courage, in the face of failure and success.  I've been shown the importance of patience and perseverance, especially when things look tough.

"People always laugh when I say I would probably be out on the streets had it not been for junior golf. And while this is a bit of an exaggeration, the truth is not far [off]." 

The Cinderella story, however, isn't complete without a fairy-tale wedding.  In high school, Le's friends would laugh when she swore she would one day get married on a golf course. And when the special day arrived last year? 

"They all thought I was joking," laughed Le. "But I actually did get married on a golf course. That's how much the game meant to me!" 

Le now works for UC Berkeley, as a financial analyst in the English Department.  remains close.  "They kind of adopt you," chuckled.  When her husband's parents couldn't attend a Vietnamese engagement ceremony, Le had and his wife stand in as parents of the groom.   

Evidently, means as much to his students as they do to him.  When the VJGF planned to construct a Junior Golf Learning Center, it was a past participant that helped to turn the dream into a reality.  The Learning Center consists of a practice facility and a hitting area, as well as a building containing a library, study room and a pro shop.  Matty Matoian, a former student, donated all the land upon which the Leaning Center was built, and continues to offer support.

Matoian wasn't the only past participant who chipped in. estimated that a dozen former VJGF students, who are now adults, donated funds to help construct the Learning Center.  The Learning Center will focus on serving youth in a one-mile radius, where 98 percent are on the Federal Free or Reduced Lunch program. 

When asked how VJGF plans on instructing 1,500 participants per year, said: "Almost all the golf pros in Fresno and surrounding areas have been my students.  Most of them help out." 

With VJGF, there never seems to be a shortage of helping hands. In the past 10 years, participants have gone onto higher education and employment throughout the country.  VJGF has helped to shape community leaders, professional golfers, city officials and teachers, truly having a global impact through local programming. More than a decade of difference has had a stellar impact. Remarkable potential exists; the proof lies in individuals, such as Le, who inspires with their poignant stories. 

All it took was for someone to open the door.

is a First-Year Fellow in the USGA Grants and Fellowship office.  For more information about TheFresno-GreaterSan JoaquinValleyJunior Golf Foundation, please contact her at(719) 471-4810, ext. 17or at bbodine@usga.org .