As publishers of golf-related books and magazines for the past twenty years, The Golf Street Journal (GSJ) has had the privilege of working with dozens of city and county parks and recreation districts throughout the state and within the metro area. Looking back, we realized we have worked directly or indirectly with every Director of Denver Golf in that span of time. Most recently, GSJ sat down with Scott Rethlake, the current Director of Golf for The City of Denver to learn more about Denver course management and their current focus.
We discovered that under Scott’s direction, Denver Golf is aggressively focusing on an outreach campaign within the specific Denver communities related to each course he manages in the metro area. This campaign is committed to truly supporting the cultural and economic diversity that exists within each of the course’s communities. His organization wants all individuals – regardless of age, race, or gender – to feel welcome at the courses and to be respected and treated as equals regardless of their level of skill or competitiveness. This initiative began in 2002 under Tom Woodard’s tenure. Tom was the Director of Golf then and holds some well respected records for his competitive play as a junior golfer at City Park Golf Course. He is currently Director of Golf at Foothills Parks and Recreation in Lakewood.
The City of Denver Golf’s VISION: To be the national leader in the golf industry regarding accessibility, diversity, environmental stewardship, and building the game for the future.
The City of Denver Golf’s MISSION: To deliver a complete golf experience, provide our community with excellent customer service, programs to grow the game for future generations and outstanding course conditions while remaining stewards of the environment.
We also had the opportunity to visit with Paula Purifoy. Paula is the Junior Golf Director for Denver Golf and the Executive Director of The First Tee of Denver. She is directly in charge of the junior golf programs for Denver’s courses and communities. Denver Golf has a 501 C-3 non-profit charter partnership with The World Golf Foundation dba First Tee, a national non-profit effort designed to give underserved boys and girls opportunities to practice and play golf. Paula oversees the Denver chapter’s efforts to integrate the positive educational goals and personal development of each junior golfer. The focus is on at-risk kids, both boys and girls, coming from 15 different inner-city schools. The mission is to educate and inspire youth academically, socially and physically through the game of golf, and they stress the importance of staying in school. They accomplish this by integrating the philosophical approach that winning in the game and winning in life can be one in the same. This is done through instilling an appreciation for the attributes of integrity, respect and hard work.
In order to sustain these programs, Paula devotes her efforts full-time to raising the funds necessary to carry out the busy schedule of play as well as the time spent going into the schools to promote the program and attract the kids. This program is fueled through the support of donations directly from the communities. It takes approximately $250,000.00 to afford this program annually. There has been a shortfall of funds in the last few years due to our local economic turmoil. Yet ironically, the need for these programs is especially elevated in such times. So, needless to say, you can make a difference! This can be done simply by contacting Paula and making a donation for this superior cause. Who better than us, the golfing community, to support the game we love and enjoy so much while helping to ensure the future of our game for the community and its kids. For many years, our slogan here at The Golf Street Journal has been, “Junior Golf…The future of the game!”
To learn how you or your company or organization can support this effort and make a contribution, please contact Paula Purifoy at paula.purifoy@denvergov.org or 303-370-1563.
The Golf Street Journal would like to recognize and applaud the efforts of these admirable goals, the noble people putting them into action, and the significant support they give our local youth through junior golf. Bravo!
