SCGA Foundation

Training on Wheels golf outreach program a success in Ventura County

Nearly everyone in the golf industry these days is talking about how to grow the game, and the Ventura County Junior Golf Association is taking direct action at solving the problem.

The VCJGA, a chapter of The First Tee, has a mobile golf instruction program that brings tuitionfree life skills and golf instruction to the underserved kids of Ventura County. In 2006, this SCGA Foundation-supported program provided more than 2,400 hours of golf and First Tee life skills education to more than 600 underserved kids in Ventura County.

The Training on Wheels outreach program was started in 2001 by golf instructor Jon Gomez as a way for him to give back to the community where he was raised. His goal is to help troubled kids by introducing them to golf and its inherent values.

As a troubled youth who was looking for direction in his life, Gomez was introduced to the game by his uncle as a way to keep him off the streets. It not only became a sport he enjoyed and thrived in, but eventually became a passion that inspires his career and motivates him to expose as many kids as possible to the game as a tribute to all of the people who helped him growing up.

Armed with portable hitting nets, putting greens and Wiffle golf balls, Gomez travels to elementary schools, YMCAs and Boys & Girls Clubs where he teaches kids as young as 5 years old what golf is all about. Gomez and his part-time staff of 14 instructors also work with other youth programs such as P.A.L., Special Olympics and Big Brothers/Big Sisters. If the youth program doesn’t have a field to play on, he sets up his mats and nets in the gym or even a cafeteria.

“None of these programs would be possible without the support of the SCGA Foundation,” Gomez says. “Its generosity allows us to do what we do.”

When the kids finish their fourweek program, they are invited out to play at Sterling Hills Golf Club in Camarillo, where Gomez is the director of instruction. “We do everything from teaching them how to play to understanding the basic rules and etiquette to showing them how to mark a ball on the green,” he says. “The goal is to reduce the fear new golfers have, and lessen the intimidation of going out and being on the golf course.”

If a child wants to continue with the game but money is an obstacle, the VCJGA provides scholarships into its two-year teaching academy program. The kids are also provided with golf clubs, range tokens and greens fees, if necessary. “Our mission is to provide accessible and affordable golf programs to kids who normally would not have access to the game,” states Sean Farnan, president of the VCJGA.

“Jon is tireless in his dedication to golf and to serving underprivileged kids,” says Sally Quinlan, a former LPGA Tour player and current executive director of the VCJGA. “I have never met a more genuine, caring person who not only respects and honors the game of golf, but who gives back to the game 1,000 percent through his program.”

Gomez says that “it’s all about giving these kids an opportunity to experience something different, that it might show them an alternative to their everyday lives and help create some excitement or a new positive outlook while building their confidence.

“Golf has so much to offer kids because it’s a game for a lifetime,” continues Gomez. “ I’ve gone to some pretty rough places in Oxnard and Pt. Hueneme where most of the kids have never even picked up a golf club, let alone been to a golf course. Seeing their faces when they hit the ball solid for the first time is amazing! And no one smiles like a little kid when they’re excited. It feels good to give back to the community where I grew up.”

For more information on the Training on Wheels program, contact Jon Gomez through the VCJGA offices at 805/535-1232. Bob Buttitta at the Ventura County Star contributed to the article.

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