I started my week at the Down Syndrome Association Golf Outing in my hometown of Cincinnati, OH. Mom, Dad, Lindsay—I was only there for the event and left right away, otherwise I promise I would have stopped by!!
Anyway, this was my first time attending the event. Steve Hunt was kind enough to get me signed up and slotted to hang out at one of the holes with Robert all day. The event took place at the Maketewah Country Club, which is a beautiful venue in Cincy, and the individuals responsible for putting on the event went all out.
The Down Syndrome Association of Greater Cincinnati (DSAGC) has created countless programs and events to support the community, and the effort involved in making this one spectacular was evident as soon as I arrived. There were two groups of golfers that came out to support, one session beginning early in the morning, and the other teeing off around 1pm. I made the drive from Indianapolis for the afternoon session—and it was well worth it—but I was amazed by how many volunteers were there to help from 7am until late in the evening.
My “role,” if you will, was simply to hang out with Robert at the 18th tee box and chat with the groups as they attempted to put their respective tee shots somewhere near The Green (not an easy task on this particular hole). An old friend of mine let me take a “celebrity shot” for his group. Let’s just say I hit it straight and we’ll leave it at that.
Spending time with Robert always brings me joy, and last Monday was no different. He has quite the sense of humor, and he had me laughing as soon as I showed up. All attendees w
ere given name tags for obvious reasons, so Rob decided to announce his presence in a way that only he would: “You Know Who I Am,” the tag read. And he was right, that community has watched Robert grow up and been there to support the Hunt family along the way.
Side note: He later told me why he wrote that on his name tag.
“Uhh, because you’re a celebrity here, right?” I asked, assuming that was the inspiration behind it.
“No, it’s from Iron Man 2.”
Sheer disappointment from Rob when I told him that Maria and I had not gotten around to watching that movie yet. This was homework he had given me from one of our FaceTime calls. Rob, if you’re reading this— we’ll get to it, I promise!
Moving on…
It was amazing to see the hundreds of people that took time away from work on a Monday to be there for the Down Syndrome Community. Rob and I were accompanied by two new friends at the 18th tee box, a man named Peter and his Mother.
There were many moments throughout the day that brought a smile to my face, but the one I’d like to highlight for you involves Peter. He is 31 years old, has that positive and infectious energy we know of so many individuals with Down Syndrome, and happens to be one heck of an athlete. His Mom told me he loved to golf and had a pretty good swing, so I asked him if he plays any other sports. I found out that the better question would have been “which sports do you not currently play?” Even with the work I’m doing through Transcending Labels, individuals like Pete continue to surprise and amaze me. I cannot remember all of the sports he currently makes time for, but I’m pretty sure the only thing he doesn’t participate in is Underwater Basket Weaving.
Midway through the afternoon round, he got up to the tee box to hit a shot for one of the groups. I mentioned earlier that this is not an easy hole, even for the avid golfer. Pete calmly stood over the ball, took an easy-breezy practice shot, and WACK. He absolute pulverized the ball and watched it soar all the way to The Green, taking a couple of bounces before it settled about 14 feet from the hole. The group looked on in amazement and gave him a huge round of applause.
“Great shot Pete, that was better than anyone I’ve seen all day,” I said as he made his way back to the tent.
“Yes yes I know, all me!” He replied with confidence and huge smile.
His mother shared with me that she loves this part of the golf outing because it shows people that he can perform just as well as anyone else. Better than anyone else, I’d add. This is a microcosm for everything I aim to get across with the Transcending Labels mission. With one look at Pete, just like with Robert, most people can tell that he has Down Syndrome. What that first glance doesn’t tell you, though, is the level of skill and capability he possesses.
How can we get closer to everyone seeing that? How can we create an awareness throughout our world that makes our first impression “Oh, I can tell he or she has special needs. I wonder which special talents this person has. I wonder what I could learn from this person” ?
It was clear from interactions with the golfers at this event that they understood that mindset. People were not lowering expectations of the individuals around them, they were simply there to enjoy a great event together.
As is the case with every time that I have ever volunteered for something involving the Special Needs Community, I left with one takeaway: I’ll be back.
