The very first time I walked through the doors of Ranken Jordan Pediatric Bridge Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri, I instantly knew I was in a very special place. Go anywhere in the building and you will see and hear children laughing, smiling, playing, and simply being kids. They are doing all of these things at the same time as they are getting better. Ranken Jordan's "Care Beyond the Bedside" model of healthcare utilizes "play" as the key component of the countless miracles that happen every day inside, and many times outside, the hospital. Having the good fortune for golf to be a small part of that is something I am grateful for every day.
Several weeks ago we had a new junior golfer join us and he picked up a golf club for the very first time. That first week, Deon was in his wheelchair and didn't have the strength to swing the golf club on his own, so we helped him with hand-over-hand assistance. From the first golf ball he hit he was hooked! Every week Deon has been one of the first to arrive for golf and one of the last to leave. Over the past few weeks Deon has been getting stronger and required very little, if any, hand-over-hand help to hit golf balls from his wheelchair. This is the type of progress in our junior golf program that I so enjoy seeing. Yes, he is hitting the golf ball harder, straighter, and farther, but the reason he is able to do that is because he is getting better. Little did I know the surprise Deon would spring on me at our most recent junior golf clinic.
Like any of the other weeks, Deon was prompt for our 2:00 p.m. tee time and started hitting golf balls right away. One thing he has started doing much more of the past two or three weeks is trash talking to the golf balls! He gets a kick out of it and he makes all of us laugh when we hear it. Every time he squares up his U.S. Kids Golf driver and hits one really hard we hear him say, "I showed that golf ball who is the boss!" After one such drive, Deon turned to his rec therapist, Sean, and said, "I want to stand up to hit golf balls." Sean immediately grabbed a gait belt to put on Deon to make certain he wouldn't fall and I teed up the first golf ball for him to hit standing up. As you might expect, Deon started to send drives sailing across Ranken Jordan National Golf Links! After about 20 minutes of standing to hit golf balls he told us he needed a break and wanted to sit in his wheelchair, but that he wanted to keep hitting golf balls. A few minutes later Deon was back standing up to hit some more. Before he finished hitting golf balls, Deon looked at me with the biggest smile on his face and said, "This is awesome!"
Yes, Deon, you are absolutely correct. This is awesome, you are awesome, and I can't wait for Wednesday to get here!
