By Vinnie Manginelli, PGA
The 10 ALL IN Foundation is a program created by former NFL player and Super Bowl XLIII MVP Santonio Holmes and his childhood friend Jimmy Vincent, a nationally certified counselor in Atlanta. With the successes they have achieved as adults after a childhood of lacking more than they had, these inspirational men are committed to ensuring that the youth of their area in Belle Glade, Florida, have the opportunities that they didn’t have.
Belle Glade has long been underrepresented in areas such as education, employment, healthcare, and agriculture. After extensive research conducted by Holmes and Vincent, it was determined that altering this cycle could be stifled by a comprehensive STEM-like program, to which they’d add their own twist – Art.
This STEAM curriculum would enable Holmes, Vincent and their team to address the individual needs of each young person in their program. It would allow each child and teen to develop their creativity, confidence, collaboration and problem-solving skills so they have a chance to thrive as adults and pay it forward to the next generation.
Nonprofits, such as the 10 ALL IN Foundation, rely on partnerships to help them forge ahead with their mission and goals. And since founding the organization, Holmes and Vincent have fostered relationships with local businesses and major corporations.
One significant affiliation is with the South Florida PGA Foundation, the charitable arm of the South Florida PGA Section. Tom Wildenhaus, the PGA of America Director of Golf at Olde Florida Golf Club in Naples, Florida, is the President of the South Florida PGA Foundation, a role he’s had for 15 years.
The work of the SFPGA Foundation predates Wildenhaus’s association. But in 2009, the SFPGA Section President at the time called upon Wildenhaus and two other SFPGA members, Kevin Murphy and Mike O’Brien, to gauge the viability of the Foundation.
“He asked us as a task force to look over the Foundation, and either sunset it or turn it into something impactful,” Wildenhaus explains. “With the help of our fantastic staff, the heart and soul of our Foundation, we’re in the right place to make a substantial difference in people’s lives within the boundaries of our PGA Section.”
Lee Stroever is the PGA of America Director of Golf at Emerald Dunes Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. He’s been there for eight years and has served on the South Florida PGA Foundation Board for six years. He is currently the SFPGA Foundation Vice President.
“The SFPGA Foundation has several programs and outlets through which we help the community and our PGA Members through the game of golf,” Stroever says. “Our work with the 10 ALL IN Foundation is but one of these facets of this more extensive community outreach.”
This partnership, now four years in place, has helped Holmes and Vincent give back to their community and bring golf to South Florida youth who might otherwise not have been introduced to the great game.
The 10 ALL IN Foundation STEAM and Golf Summer Camp is the annual culmination of much hard work by Holmes and Vincent’s team, as well as by the SFPGA Foundation Board of Directors, which includes:
- Tom Wildenhaus, PGA – President
- Lee Stroever, PGA – Vice President
- Paul Clivio, PGA – Secretary
- Kevin Murphy, PGA Treasurer
- Steve Waugh, PGA – Director
- Justin Thompson, PGA – Director
- Jim O’Connor – Director
This summer camp “impacts youth in Belle Glade, introducing high school students to the game of golf and the great life lessons it teaches.” According to the SFPGA website, camp activities include:
- Golf Instruction from PGA Professionals
- Health & Wellness Education
- Social & Emotional Learning
- Soft Skills Training
“The program has evolved over the years, with the latest version of the summer camp taking place back in June,” Stroever tells us. “The SFPGA Foundation helps fund the 10 ALL IN STEAM and Summer Golf Camp, and also provides PGA of America Members and Associates who facilitate the golf portion of the camp. Tom and I have coached in the summer camp before.”
Wildenhaus and Stroever tell me that the summer camp took place this year at Belle Glade Municipal Golf Course, but has been housed at local parks and schools in the past. The location changes each year, but perhaps with the local municipal course’s buy-in, the 10 ALL IN STEAM and Summer Golf Camp may have found a home right there in Belle Glade. Participation in the summer camp ranges from a couple of dozen to more than 40 young people.
Of course, with any other philanthropic endeavor, the volunteers are what make it a success, and without these PGA of America Golf Professionals, this summer camp would not have grown over the years:
- Bridget Ackley, PGA – The Park
- Billy Ashford, PGA – Boca Lago Country Club
- Jennifer Barnsley, PGA – Delray Dunes Golf & Country Club
- Ben Bauer, PGA – Hunters Run Golf & Racquet Club
- John Bungert, PGA – Life Member
- Gino Composto, PGA – Mayacoo Lakes Country Club –
- David Eby, PGA – Banyan Golf Club
- Pam Elders, PGA – Boca West Country Club
- Jerrel Gill, PGA – Riviera Country Club
- Joe Grohman, PGA – Joe Grohman Golf Foundation
- Doug Huber, PGA – Emerald Dunes Club
- Roger Kennedy Jr., PGA – The Club at Quail Ridge
- Michael Littlejohn, PGA – Emerald Dunes Club
- Frank Lostaglio, PGA – Seagate Country Club
- Guy Mancini, PGA – Yamaha Golf Cars
- Allen Manguson, PGA – Life Member
- Don Meadows, PGA – Quail Valley Golf Club
- Clay Myers, PGA – The Park
- Kenny Pope, PGA – JF Liquidation
- Bo Preston, PGA – The Links at Boynton Beach
- Matt Sheperd, PGA – McArthur Golf Club
“The kids are getting real exposure to the game of golf after most of them had never been to a golf course before,” Stroever adds. “It’s one of those situations in life that when you leave, you can’t believe how rewarding it is.”
This year’s participants ranged from 5th grade to high school, and they learned core life values, leadership concepts and a new golf lesson every day. Because it’s a STEM program, the kids involved have done well in school and have leadership aspirations as they get older. Seeing leadership at its best firsthand among the many PGA of America Golf Professionals who’ve volunteered their time is a life lesson learned in real time that they won’t soon forget.
Now one of the most successful PGA Foundations in the country, the SFPGA Foundation spends upwards of $750,000 on its annual programming, demonstrating the importance of the foresight that Wildenhaus, Murphy and O’Brien had 16 years ago. 10 ALL IN is but one group aided in its endeavors by the SFPGA Foundation.
Many stories like this can be written about each organization or individual that Wildenhaus and his team help each year. One such tale is that of E’Rinze Murphy, a 10 ALL IN participant and Florida Southern College student who earned a $20,000 scholarship from the SFPGA Foundation back in 2023. Wildenhaus and Stroever believe the lessons he learned through 10 ALL IN were instrumental in his achievement.
“We are fulfilling our mission,” Wildenhaus says, “which is to change lives through the game of golf.”
For more information on the SFPGA Foundation, log on to its website today.
For more information on the 10 ALL IN Foundation, log on to its website today.
