Greetings,
I hope all is well. I’m writing this blog on behalf of my young cousin Shasta Averyhardt. It’s a name you will hear a lot about in the near future. Let me tell you a little bit about her, see why I want to shout about her accomplishments from the highest mountain.
On April 1, 2009, an Associated Press article ran on the NBC Sports web page with the following headline:
Tiger still the 1 — as in, the only black pro golfer.
Stated in the article is the following shocking information:
“Yet in the dozen years since Woods slipped on a green jacket at Augusta National and paid tribute to the black pioneers who broke down golf’s racial barriers, no other African-American has earned PGA Tour membership.
"Not a single black woman plays on the LPGA Tour.”
If you’re like me, your next thought was “why?” We have an African American first family in the White House and only one black pro golfer? Like the barriers to so many other first achievements the reasons are the same; opportunity and resources.
Shasta Averyhardt is a young lady who will change this statistic.
Golfing opportunities exist in community programs, schools, and colleges. Shasta has found the opportunities and they have found her. She grew up playing in Flint’s (Michigan) two major development programs: Flint Inner City Junior Golf Association and Flint Junior Golf Association. She excelled and went on to capture the Flint Junior Golf Association’s Junior Championship in the summer of 2003. She was runner-up in 2004.
Shasta earned a full academic scholarship at Jackson State University and she used her time there to develop not only her swing, but a business acumen. She graduated in December 2008 with a degree in accounting.
The only remaining barrier is resources. That’s where you can help.
If you own a business or manufacture a product that would be suitable for athletic endorsement, please let us know. Shasta has already made a significant impact on the national stage. She was featured in advertisements and billboards in the “Choose Jackson State …I did.” campaign. Or if you prefer, you can send any cash donation.
Your generous sponsorship will be noted in a Certificate of Sponsorship that is suitable for framing and will, no doubt, become a collector’s item. Can you imagine your pride today had you been an early sponsor of Tiger Woods when he became a pro golfer in August, 1996.
To participant in the future click here:
http://shastagolf.us/
and forward this to 10 friends.
Check out this recent article about Shasta:
http://www.mlive.com/sports/flint/index.ssf/2009/08/professional_golf_career_going.html
http://sz0047.ev.mail.comcast.net/service/home/~/Shasta-Pro Article-Ready to take the final step.pdf?auth=co&loc=en_US&id=70480&part=2
