WM Phoenix Open

GRANT WILL HELP SOAZ AND ITS ATHLETES AS IT SAFELY RETURNS TO IN-PERSON ACTIVITIES AND PROGRAMMING THIS FALL.

Thunderbirds Charities – the charitable giving arm of The Thunderbirds, hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – recently awarded Special Olympics Arizona $120,000 to help support and fund its “Return to Activities” initiative coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Special Olympics Arizona has only hosted a few in-person events since the pandemic shut down programming in March of 2020, but is planning to bring back its year-round sports training, competitions and support programs starting this Fall, including its Phoenix Breakfast With Champions in September and Fall Games in October.

“In-person competition is incredibly important to Special Olympics Arizona and we’re obviously thrilled to help bring these athletes back to the playing field after what has been an extremely tough year,” said Scott Jenkins, President of Thunderbirds Charities. “The Thunderbirds and Special Olympics Arizona have a longstanding relationship and we’re very proud to continue our support of the organization and their athletes who give it their all every chance they get.”

Fundraising was extremely limited this past year, and this grant from Thunderbirds Charities will help financially support SOAZ and its athletes as it prepares to safely return to in-person activities, programs and competitions.  It also will help SOAZ expand opportunities to empower the Arizonans with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities to be healthy, productive and respected members of society while breaking down barriers they face and the increased isolation and challenges brought on by the pandemic.

“This grant from Thunderbirds Charities is so important to Special Olympics Arizona as we look to get back to in-person activities and events this Fall, something that is so vital to our athletes, both physically and mentally,” said Special Olympics Arizona President and CEO Jamie Heckerman.  “With fundraising taking a hit during the pandemic, grants like these are crucial to help us get back on our feet.  Thunderbirds Charities has been a great partner for many years, and we can’t thank them enough for their continued support.”

The purpose of Special Olympics Arizona is to empower children and adults with intellectual disabilities to live healthy, fulfilling and meaningful lives. This vision of acceptance and inclusion is realized through health, leadership and advocacy programs, as well as providing year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-style sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving more opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.  For more information visit www.specialolympicsarizona.org.

The 2022 WM Phoenix Open will be held at TPC Scottsdale in early February, 2022. “The People’s Open” has been named the Tournament of the Year by the PGA TOUR four times in the past seven years (2014, 2015, 2018, 2019) to acknowledge the tournament’s legendary status as one the most unique events in golf. The 2022 edition will mark the 87th playing of the event (one of the five oldest events on the PGA TOUR) and the 13^th with Waste Management as title sponsor.

Thunderbirds Charities is a non-profit organization formed in 1986 to distribute monies raised through the Waste Management Phoenix Open golf tournament. The Thunderbirds Charities Board consists of 15 board members from varying professional backgrounds. The mission of Thunderbirds Charities is to assist children and families, help people in need and improve the quality of life in our communities. The organization’s giving is directed toward organizations based or with a significant presence in Arizona. The Thunderbirds were founded in 1937 with the mission of promoting the Valley of the Sun through sports. The Thunderbirds consist of 55 “active” members and more than 280 “life” members. For more information on The Thunderbirds visit www.thunderbirdscharities.org.

On June 25, Thunderbirds Charities presented USO Arizona a check in the amount of $50,000 to bolster the program which supports U.S. military service personnel and their families in Arizona. The check presentation ceremony took place at Arizona National Guard Headquarters near Papago Golf Club in Phoenix as part of a larger BBQ lunch event which honored and thanked numerous active guardsmen and their families.

USO Arizona works to provide morale-boosting and family-strengthening programs to the more than 50,000 soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen, Coast Guardsmen families who call Arizona home.

USO Arizona has centers in Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and downtown Phoenix, and a team of more than 250 volunteers and staff who help implement this valuable programming across the state.  In 2020, USO Arizona impacted more than 156,000 service members and families.

The Thunderbirds have cultivated a strong connection to our nation’s military service personnel over the years. Each year as hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open, The Thunderbirds extend free admission to all active and retired military personnel, as well as free food and drink at the Birdies for the Brave Patriots Outpost.

Thanks USO Arizona for all that you do for our military and their families.

For more info on USO Arizona, CLICK HERE.

The Thunderbirds – hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – announced 2021 Tournament Chairman Scott Jenkins was elected Big Chief of The Thunderbirds for the 2021-22 fiscal year.  As Big Chief, Jenkins will serve as President of both the organization and Thunderbirds Charities, the charitable arm of The Thunderbirds that provides enormous financial aid to hundreds of Arizona charities and non-profit organizations every year.

“Everything that we do – from the success of the tournament to the amount of money we give to those in need – all comes out of the incredible community support that we get from our loyal sponsors and the best fans in golf,” Jenkins said. “In a year like 2021 which saw unprecedented challenges, it was especially important for us as a group to support our charity partners so that they could continue to serve the Valley. It was a tremendous effort from everyone involved, and with the pandemic challenges continuing its downward trend, we’re crossing our fingers and looking forward to one of our best years ever at the WM Phoenix Open in 2022.”

Jenkins served as Assistant Tournament Chairman in 2020, was Tournament Chairman in 2021 and now Big Chief, taking over for 2022-21 Big Chief Tim Woods.  The 2022 WM Phoenix Open is being led by Tournament Chairman Michael Golding and Assistant Tournament Chairman Pat Williams.  A new Big Chief is elected every year by The Thunderbirds.

“It was a great honor to be Tournament Chairman for ‘The People’s Open’ and I look forward to serving as the 85th Big Chief of The Thunderbirds,” Jenkins said.  “Now the fun continues and I get to be a part of the charity aspect helping award millions of dollars to hundreds of vital Valley charitable organizations.”

The Thunderbirds continue to be active in the community and routinely donate money to many community-based organizations that improve the quality of life for Arizonans in need.  In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, The Thunderbirds have stepped up more than just offering financial assistance by visiting charities in need that require in person assistance as they strive to be active in the community by donating their time.

Over the first weekend in May, The Thunderbirds made their 9th in-person visit (since the pandemic hit) to help a local charity and were on hand at Ability 360 to help give COVID-19 vaccination second shots (Pfizer) to Special Olympics Arizona athletes and other persons with disabilities, caregivers and family members in greater Phoenix.

The Thunderbirds worked in various shifts during the weekend as “vaccine assistants” along with Ability 360 staff during this “Disability Community Vaccination Event”.  Those duties included greeting and check-in, patient registration, assisting patients to nurse stations, sitting with patients after vaccine is given, traffic flow within the venue, and updating vaccine cards.

The Thunderbirds have partnered closely with Special Olympics Arizona for years, and typically host the Special Olympics Putting Challenge during Waste Management Phoenix Open week, which was unfortunately canceled in 2021 due to health considerations.  They chose this date specifically to help Special Olympics Arizona and to just interact and engage with the athletes and others getting their second shot.

Thank you to Ability 360 for hosting this event and for helping Special Olympics Athletes and others with disabilities to get their second vaccine shot.

The game of golf is extremely important to the State of Arizona, and with roughly 200 golf courses in the Phoenix area alone, the game is a defining feature of the Valley of the Sun. The Thunderbirds – hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – are obviously extremely familiar with golf, using the game to raise millions of dollars for charity each year from the proceeds generated from one of the PGA TOUR’s most iconic stops.

The Thunderbirds aren’t only interested in the world’s best players who tee it up at TPC Scottsdale each year for “The People’s Open”. The game of golf can only grow through participation of youth who enjoy the game, which is why The Thunderbirds have sponsored the Junior Golf Association of Arizona (JGAA) for decades, and proudly support one of the JGAA’s largest annual events – The Thunderbird Invitational.

“As a Thunderbird, our main fundraiser is the Waste Management Phoenix Open, but it really starts with junior golf,” said Alex Clark, Thunderbird and JGAA board chairman. “The game of golf is the greatest connector of all and were so fortunate to be involved.”

JGAA Executive Director Scott McNevin echoes Clark’s sentiments about the game and its importance to our communities.

“Golf is really a game they can play for their entire life and teach their kids as well,” McNevin said. “We see a lot of our kids move on to college, and even if they don’t play in college, they get an education and hopefully get back to the game once they graduate college and become successful citizens.”

The program is working tremendously. In the last two years, the JGAA graduated more than 100 kids that will play some level of collegiate golf – something The Thunderbirds and the JGAA are extremely proud of.

To learn more about the JGAA, visit www.jgaa.org.