First Tee - Lake Erie

⭐ Participant Spotlight: Sydney Socha ⛳ Sydney has been a member of our First Tee and LPGA*USGA Girls Golf program since 2020 and received our 2024 Amanda Liford Girls Golf Spirit Award! She is a talented golfer, back-to-back district champion as part of the St. Ursula Arrows golf team, and an impactful leader and volunteer to our younger members. She was selected for the 2023 First Tee Innovators Forum and the 2023 John Deere Drive Your Future Academy.

⭐️ Volunteer Spotlight: Ron Schafer ⛳ Ron Schafer started volunteering for First Tee in 2021 and has been here every Tuesday since! He was named our 2024 First Tee Volunteer of the Year! He helps out wherever needed - from running stations during classes, to walking with groups on the golf course, helping us judge our chili competition at Leprechaun Links, or collecting and donating equipment we can hand out to all of our participants. Thank you Ron for all you do for our organization!

We are thrilled to welcome our newest board member, Steve Hartman! Steve joined Spengler Nathanson in April of 2019 after two years of running his own solo practice and fifteen years of firm experience prior to that. His practice consists of civil litigation, criminal defense, and election law. Areas of significant experience include business litigation, construction litigation, crisis management, probate litigation, commercial disputes, civil rights law, and election law. Steve earned a B.A. in political science and an M.B.A. from the University of Toledo before settling on the law as a career. Having earned his law degree from UT as well, he has been practicing since 2002. He was honored to be chosen for 20 Under 40 in 2007, awarded the Toledo Bar Association’s Trustee’s Award in 2009, and named a Fellow of the Ohio State Bar Foundation that same year. Steve lives in downtown Toledo with his wife Carrie, and is an avid golfer. He is excited to support First Tee in continuing to advance our mission in the greater Toledo area! Welcome Steve!

⭐️ Participant Spotlight: Emsley Vue ⛳ Emsley has been a member of our First Tee and LPGA*USGA Girls Golf program since 2022 and was recently named our 2024 First Tee Participant of the Year! She always has a positive attitude and is ready to make friends with new golfers! On her time in First Tee Emsley said, "When I started at First Tee I wasn't so good so I felt like I wanted to quit but I kept going through lessons and I got better as time went on."

We are happy to host The University of Toledo Athletic Department Holiday Party once again this evening! Each attendee had to pay an “admission price” of one box of snacks for us to use for children enrolled in First Tee. Go Rockets!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for our annual First Tee Gala this weekend! We had a blast honoring our awards winners, Ambassador Club and the inaugural First Tee Golf League Champions! This year's winners included: Emsley Vue - Alan Fadel Participant of the Year Sydney Socha - Amanda Liford Girls Golf Spirit Award Ron Schafer - Volunteer of the Year John Reed - Newcomer Award

Happy #GivingTuesdayNWO! 💚 This year we are hoping to raise $3,000 to celebrate 3 years since the opening of the Dattilo Youth Leadership Center. You can see the growth of our facility in the photos below! Since opening, we have seen over 100 youth daily come through the doors of the DYLC! Donations can be made directly on Venmo (@firstteele) or online at https://lnkd.in/eXYJUbp2, with #GivingTuesday in the Gift Note. Any contribution to First Tee - Lake Erie on #GivingTuesdayNWO will make a direct impact on the youth we serve. We are incredibly grateful for your support! Whether you can give financially, volunteer your time, or share with your network, we thank you for supporting our youth participants!

Happy #GivingTuesdayNWO! 💚 This year we are hoping to raise $3,000 to celebrate 3 years since the opening of the Dattilo Youth Leadership Center. You can see the growth of our facility in the photos below! Since opening, we have seen over 100 youth daily come through the doors of the DYLC! Donations can be made directly on Venmo (@firstteele) or online at https://lnkd.in/eXYJUbp2, with #GivingTuesday in the Gift Note. Any contribution to First Tee - Lake Erie on #GivingTuesdayNWO will make a direct impact on the youth we serve. We are incredibly grateful for your support! Whether you can give financially, volunteer your time, or share with your network, we thank you for supporting our youth participants!

Happy Thanksgiving from First Tee - Lake Erie! We are always thankful for everyone who positively impacts our organization! We hope everyone has a wonderful day with family, friends, and food!

Exciting times in Phoenix! 🌵⛳️ Our team had the incredible opportunity to attend the First Tee Network Summit, where we heard from inspiring leaders (including 8-time Major Champion, Tom Watson), connected with our peers from over 150 different chapters, and attended impactful education sessions. We are excited to bring new insights and energy to better impact the youth of Toledo!