Photo: Momentous Institute/Facebook
The AT&T Byron Nelson Golf Tournament is known for its beautiful spectators, outstanding golf and oft-times, soggy conditions. It’s a place where the best of the best compete; where a 16-year-old Jordan Spieth made an impressive debut back in 2010. It’s also the home of the “red pants phenomenon”—the PGA tour stop festooned by legions of smiling men in bright crimson trousers, keeping the tournament rolling along, rain or shine.
Don’t think for a minute that these guys are simply eye candy.
They are members of Salesmanship Club of Dallas, a decades-old organization that does more than show up for a photo opp when golf’s finest comes to town. These 650 high-profile business and community leaders (many of whom are not in sales, by the way) are not only the trademark of this Texas tournament, but the lifeblood of Momentous Institute, the tournament beneficiary—in a get involved, roll-up-your-sleeves kind of way.
“This isn’t the kind of charity where we write a check and hope some good is done with it, “ said Guy Kerr, 27-year Salesmanship Club member, chairman of the board for Momentous Institute, and of counsel at Locke Lord LLP. “Our members get involved in the programs to see what’s going on, and hold staff accountable for good results. We want to feel good about selling tickets and getting sponsorships—we want to support an organization that’s making a difference.”
When the Salesmanship Club began back in the 1920s, it raised funds to send troubled teens to two-year, therapeutic camps.
“In the 1980s, we focused on teens in the seventh through ninth grade,” Kerr said. “Over time, we decided that we needed to get to kids earlier if we’re going to make a real impact. So, we moved the focus to kids ranging from three years old to the fifth grade.”
Photo: Momentous Institute/Facebook
The result is the Momentous Institute (formerly Salesmanship Club Youth and Family Centers), a magical place that impacts more than 6,000 at-risk children and families each year. Its brilliant, “in it for all the right reasons” teachers and staff help kids develop, maintain or repair social-emotional health, so they can achieve their full potential. The idea is this: If you can’t settle your brain to focus on what you need to learn, you’re not going to learn. Momentous Institute takes many kids who have adult worries and teaches them the skills they need to cope.
Kerr has seen it all first-hand. That’s why he’s such an active volunteer.
“We’ve all read the stories, but until you deal with it one-on-one, you can’t understand it fully. You can’t comprehend how, if a kid is hungry, or has slept on the floor, or is worried about being abused by a parent, he or she can’t learn,” he said.
Or, the fact that, if a child can’t quiet the negativity in his or her head, that child can’t focus.
By teaching mindfulness skills, along with classroom skills, Momentous Institute does more than stop the bleeding. They rock it—with statistics that show the transformative power of an institution aptly branded with a “heart” logo.
“Ninety-nine percent of Momentous students graduate from high school after we’re done,” Kerr said. “That’s an amazing statistic. And, it’s not like we’re feeding into one or two schools. We create a jumping off point for 59 different schools in Dallas.”
It’s All About the Kids
But, here’s the thing. If you go to Momentous Institute, you’ll actually see members of the Salesmanship Club, actively involved.
For example, the Club meets every Thursday at the school, during lunch (which the individual members pay for, by the way).
“I call it ‘Thursday therapy.’ If you’re busy and you think that you don’t want to go—and you do—you walk away with a lift,” Kerr said.
Not only are members required to attend a specific number of meetings, but they’re also required to actually do something that furthers Momentous Institute’s progress. That’s why Guy Kerr, a man best known in Dallas for facilitating one of the most visible media acquisitions in local history, stops by the school on his way to work, every Monday morning at 9:30 sharp, to spend time with Freddy, his fourth grade reading buddy.
“I can’t imagine a better way to start off the week. I read to him, he reads to me—it’s great,” Kerr said. “I’m the parent of a 29-year-old and 25-year-old, so it’s been a while since I’ve read to a kid. So, this is something special. “
Seeing how the program works, from the level of a fourth-grade library desk, has been an eye-opener, even for this long-time Salesmanship Club veteran.
“During the holidays, we traditionally give our reading buddies books. I picked out a book that I didn’t know but came recommended—it was called Diary of a Wimpy Kid. When I gave Freddy the book, his eyes lit up, “ Kerr said. “I asked him if he had heard of the book. Freddy said, ‘Oh yes, it was on The New York Times’ bestseller list.’ Here was Freddy, in the fourth grade, on the school lunch program, telling me about a book that was on The New York Times’ bestseller list.”
Clearly, the program has an impact—on the students as well as the volunteers.
“Right now, Freddy can’t see his future, but I can, along with the other family and people at Momentous who work with him,” Kerr said. “And it’s going to be a bright future.”
Guy Kerr and his reading buddy, Freddy. Photo courtesy of Guy Kerr
But, can an hour, in the reading lab, once a week, make that much of a difference?
There’s a study (by University of Kansas researchers Betty Hart and Todd S. Risley) which shows that, by the age of three, children in high-income families hear 30 million more words than those from families on welfare. A statistic that has a lasting impact on the child’s performance in later life.
“The impact of not just reading but hearing and being able to articulate words is critical to development. That, the brain research, the brain formation that Momentous Institute is doing—that gives me hope that this generation is not lost, “ Kerr said.
Plus, he looks forward to Mondays now.
“After my time with Freddy, I go into the ‘real’ world in balance,” Kerr said. “I think the experience has impacted me as much as him.”
The Byron Nelson: Great Golf, Great Purpose
Although the biggest names of golf tee up at the 2016 Byron Nelson Golf Tournament, this annual fan favorite isn’t just about the golf. It’s about the kids, and the families, and the $14 million raised by those men in the red pants—and the army of staff, volunteers and fans that makes the whole thing come together.
Yes, we’re all there, cheering for our favorites—enjoying the moment a pro has that career round, or when an amateur, playing on exemption, catapults his way up the leaderboard. But, after the last scorecard is tallied and trophy awarded; after the bleachers come down and the players move on to the next tournament, the work of Momentous Institute, and the Salesmanship Club, continues on with great purpose.
“Every kid in the world needs someone to help him or her get along in life. Salesmanship Club is proud to be a small part of that; to set an example, inspire and encourage any way we can,” Kerr said.
Sometimes, that means raising millions. Or simply pulling up a chair to a desk at a library and reading with a fourth grader named Freddy. It’s the combination that makes the impact.
It’s that combination that makes us love golf, golfers and the Byron Nelson Golf Tournament even more.
