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A Message from the Executive Director

It's hard to believe that we are already in the midst of this year's spring season. Looking back, 2022 was a year of getting our programming back to normal and making significant investments in the future.



Over the past year, we invested in staff to bolster our school programming, elevate our marketing and branding, and ultimately to better steward our financial partners. We also started laying the groundwork for 2023.

With a plan to re-engage schools post-pandemic, develop new partnerships and grow into more program sites, we look forward to achieving our goal of impacting more kids in at-risk communities. I hope you join us on what will be a fun adventure in the coming year.

Please know our team is incredibly grateful for the support you have provided our chapter – we could not be where we are without you.

During his father’s deployment with the Air Force when he was seven, Jake Pierce was introduced to First Tee through a non-profit organization that connects service members’ families with a variety of programs. Jake, now 18, remembers that even with no prior exposure to golf, he immediately loved the game, and has stuck with it ever since. 

Since that first class, Jake has worked hard – setting and achieving high goals for himself. Today, Jake is a volunteer with First Tee – Central Ohio, and even joined the team as an intern last summer. He plays on his high school’s golf team, making it to Division 1 District competition, during this, his senior year. 

This year, Jake also had the opportunity to play in the Hurricane Junior Golf Tour Tournament of Champions in Orlando, after qualifying for the event through a regional tournament. 

Along with accomplishing some big goals in his golf life, Jake says his biggest takeaway from his many years in the First Tee program is the life skills. “I learned more about life skills – especially sportsmanship and integrity – than golf, which is awesome to me. It shows First Tee is balanced between the golf side and the life skills side.”

Jake will graduate from high school in the spring of 2023 and plans to play college golf at Ohio Northern and eventually join ROTC. He’s thankful for all the years of support and opportunity he’s had through First Tee. “I’ve met so many good people; been in so many great places,” said Jake. “They really want to help you succeed in life.”

If you are interested in helping kids like Jake succeed, check out our Get Involved page to learn about how you can support our mission.

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