Reluctantly I'll wade back in so that my original point might be better understood. I am delighted to talk about all the ways that golf is used to better society. For what is an inherently selfish activity, like most forms of leisure, golf and golfers have found a way to do things for others. I might add that the emphasis should lie on helping people, not on helping golf. But if we want to discuss this topic in this forum, the focus should be on the activities, not on what any of us have done individually. Perhaps Tom would agree. At the risk of violating my own rule, I could enumerate more than 3 decades of effort. But I would rather describe some programs we have at work here in the Chicago District in the hope of obtaining support or inspiring others. Since 1944 the CDGA Foundation has provided recreation through golf for disabled war veterans. In our last year prior to Covid, we provided over 150 clinics with the help of professionals and CDGA volunteers as assistants. We also hold tournaments for the vets. We also held over 90 multi-day camps for children and young adults with development disabilities at private clubs and public courses throughout our area. Again, pros are assisted by volunteers. We have constructed a 3 hole short course at our headquarters which is designed to allow those with special needs to have easy access. We also sponsor our area's Youth On Course Program allowing juniors to play golf at affordable rates. The CDGA underwrites all administrative costs for all of the programs so that every dollar raised from donations or fundraisers, like our outing, goes directly to programming. As an aside, the short course is also used for turf grass research and we have a full time agronomist who helps all of our member courses, public or private, with any help they need if their super runs into difficult problems, all at no additional charge. Finally, we are actively involved in programs to improve municipal golf, particularly in underserved minority communities.
I suspect there are programs like this in many areas. In my experience, those who participate do so because of a genuine desire to help others and combining that desire with a love for golf makes it more fun and surprisingly effective. But the emphasis should be on the programs, not on what any of us have done.