(Fairborn, OH) – The PGA REACH Southern Ohio Foundation is excited to share that Nick Heinrich has been selected to represent the Southern Ohio PGA at the fifth annual PGA HOPE National Golf and Wellness Week and will be recognized going forward as a PGA HOPE Southern Ohio Ambassador. The event will be held at the Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, MD.
“My goal is to touch the lives of as many veterans as possible and bring the joy of golf to them, as the sport and this program have done for me,” shared Nick after learning of his selection. “ Veterans have provided so much for our country and if something so small can provide the break they need in life to take their struggles away, then everything I put into this as an ambassador is worth it.”
Nick hails from the small town of Deland, FL. He joined the Air Force in 1997 as a nuclear weapons technician. After serving for 10 years, Nick got the opportunity to take on special duty as an interrogator. Nick served three tours in Iraq and one in Western Africa before retiring in 2017 as a Technical Sergeant (TSgt).
Heinrich didn’t grow up playing golf. He played very little other than during his time stationed at Nellis Air Force base in Las Vegas, NV. It wasn’t until Nick and his family got involved with the Southern Ohio PGA through the Play Yellow Birdie Bash that his interest in the game picked up.
“My son got hooked into golf by participating in his first Yellow Birdie Bash in 2022, and I followed him just to have fun,” Nick said of his reintroduction to the game. “I was terrible, but as he learned I learned.” Nick joined the PGA HOPE program in 2023 at the Centerville Chapter under the watch of PGA of America Golf Professional and program lead Brian Fennen, PGA.
“Nick continuously showed interest in becoming more and more involved in outreach programs,” noted Fennen. “He was selected by our SOPGA leadership team to become the first PGA HOPE Chapter Captain. Nick flourished in this role with his growth mindset and went above and beyond our expectations.”
Nick’s highlights of the PGA HOPE program are learning the great game of golf from the best PGA Professionals in the area, the opportunity to build friendships with fellow veterans, and the program’s power in slowing “22 a day”.
As an ambassador, Nick strives to touch the lives of as many veterans as possible and bring the joy of golf to them, as the sport and this program have done for him. Heinrich’s ambassadorship will kick off when he attends PGA HOPE National Golf and Wellness Week in October. During the training, Nick will receive a tool kit of new skills focused on advanced golf instruction and impactful wellness training. This curriculum is an extension of what Veterans have been learning throughout the years at their home PGA HOPE programs.
About PGA HOPE Southern Ohio PGA HOPE Southern Ohio
(Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) is an adaptive golf program offered by our PGA Professionals as a rehabilitation tool to improve our Veterans’ quality of life by enhancing their mental, social, physical, and emotional well-being. We serve our Veterans at seven locations in Southern Ohio with an emphasis on helping those with physical and emotional disabilities who would most benefit from our initiatives.
About PGA HOPE National Golf and Wellness Week
Over five days in Washington DC, select PGA HOPE Veterans will receive a tool kit of new skills focused on advanced golf instruction and impactful wellness training. This curriculum will be an extension of what Veterans have been learning throughout the year at their home PGA HOPE program. Golf instruction will be provided by the most respected PGA Members from around the country, and wellness instruction will be provided by leaders in Veteran healthcare from the Cohen Veteran Network (CVN). The curriculum will cover topics like nutrition, stress management, mental health, and life skills. At night, group dinners will provide the opportunity to engage with golf’s most iconic figures and will encourage Veterans to share stories of how golf has impacted their lives both on and off the course. The final day of the event will culminate with a golf outing at Congressional Country Club, where Veterans will have the opportunity to utilize the public speaking and networking skills they learned throughout the week as Ambassadors of PGA HOPE.