Las Vegas golfers from everywhere are looking forward to the renovated Reflection Bay Golf Club to re-open in September with new Paspalum greens and other enhancements. One of the first events to test the new changes is the motivational Inspiring Children Foundation charity event on Sept. 25. –By Brian Hurlburt, founder, www.LasVegasGolfInsider.com
“Everyone one at Lake Las Vegas, Reflection Bay, Raintree with Cody Winterton, and the whole Lake Las Vegas and Henderson communities have always rallied behind the Inspire Children Foundation and now they are doing the same for our inaugural golf tournament,” said Executive Director Trent Alenik. “It is an honor to have the event there. Lake Las Vegas has been a home to us for the last decade because we host our annual winter leadership retreat out there and we have a few of our staff members that live there, including our founder, Ryan Wolfson. The community holds a special place in our hearts. In addition to the golf, we have other events planned including a 5k, a pickle ball and tennis event and a high tea.”
The public is welcome to play. Contact inspire@inspiringchildren.org or call 305-764-8710 to register. Sponsorships are still available.
Reflection Bay Golf Club features five holes played along the Lake Las Vegas shoreline and was designed by Jack Nicklaus. The renovation project commenced in June 2023 and a highlight will be the implementation of the new Paspalum greens. The surface, somewhat new to the Las Vegas area, will be resistant to ball marks and to the cold and heat that impacts the area. The greens will also help save water and are very tolerant to poor water quality. The team at Reflection Bay is looking forward to having groups like Inspiring Children and others experience the new and improved Reflection Bay come this fall.
The Inspiring Children Foundation was originally created by Ryan Wolfington and Marty Hennessy and transforms lives through a whole human approach to physical, mental, and emotional health. The foundation helps youth and families from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds to rise above their challenges and struggles in life: To heal, grow and become their best selves. This includes difficult situations like teenage anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and various other mental health challenges. The best-in-class curriculum encompasses a 10-step program with over 40 tools and 100 activations to help our youth.
A key part of the program is having current and former students assist with operations. Among the many success stories is Alenik himself, who was the second graduate in the history of the foundation.
“This organization totally changed my life,” said Alenik, who grew up in the Green Valley and Henderson area. “As a kid I was struggling to find my way and was starting to get caught up in the wrong things. I met Ryan Wolfington at Lorenzi Park, which is where our program is headquartered. He saw some potential in me that I didn’t see in myself. He and I had the fork in the road conversation, and he told me that I have a choice to make. I can go right and start committing to making the right choices in my life, using tennis and education as a way to get a scholarship and get out of Vegas, or I could go left down the path of self-destruction and have a very hard life. With Ryan and Marty’s guidance, my whole life changed.”
Now, the impactful success stories are countless. Alenik returned from a job on Wall Street about a decade ago to help ensure the program thrived. Alenik’s good friend and the first student to graduate, Fredrick Prandecki, also returned to Southern Nevada and operates Bob’s Repair, one of the leading HVAC companies in the area.
“We have been around for 22 years and are a leader in the space of transforming lives of at-risk youth through physical, emotional, social and mental health,” Alenik said. “About 95 percent of our graduates go on to earn college scholarships. Many of them have come back to Southern Nevada and started businesses, become executives, and hold other quality positions. Our program has a few elements that are unique including project driven learning when we include students in our leadership program to help run events like the golf tournament. That gives them a ton of terrific experience and helps them grow as leaders and team members. Plus, about 90 percent of our staff are Inspiring Children alumni.”
There are a few different reasons to possibly play in the Inspiring Children Foundation event. For the (new) course and the meaningful cause.
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