Golfing
is great!
Aces Fore Autism Mission Statement
The goal of this program is to change the way kids with specia needs view golf and more importantly themselves. I’m Harrison Frind, and I created Aces Fore Autism for children with autism and other special needs to experience and pursue golf. The program will make the sport easier to access, learn and play. I am planning on donating all monies raised to the ELS for Autism Foundation, a national autism golf charity. I hope to do this by selling merchandise with our logo and offering the lessons at a small fee to participants. We are also thinking of having a dinner/gala at the end of each session to raise more awareness and funds.
I was diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) when I was very young. My parents wanted me to be active, social and to participate in all activities. I tried a lot of team sports. When I discovered golf, I felt with my autism, it was a better choice because there was not as much distraction and also more importantly for me, because of the rules and the expectations by the coaches and other players it was a much more welcoming environment and there was a lot less opportunity to be bullied.
I have been playing golf for about 5 years and I believe it has helped me with my athletic ability, my social skills, and my self confidence. I came up with this idea because I want to keep other kids safe from the negative side of sports and give them the chance to excel at something and feel good about themselves like I do now.
For the Fall we are doing a one-day 2 hour clinic. I envision by the spring, the program will be 4 weeks (one day a week) and should be open to kids ages 6 and up, all levels. To get this off the ground, I am partnering with the Metropolitan Golf Association. They have generously offered to provide the coaches, equipment and the locations. I will be promoting the program through my website and YouTube channel @acesforeautism. I will also be advertising it in several Special Needs Groups in online forums like FB and Instagram. I am hoping to get on the news and maybe the Golf Channel as well!!
The goal for the first session would be to accumulate approximately a dozen participants. If it is successful, we will try to have TWO groups of 12 running at different times. I was also fortunate to have a professional logo designed for me. So, I have designed logoed items to sell at golf shops around the tri-state area that you can see here. I am hopeful that this will catch on and it will become a permanent program in Westchester and possibly in other areas in the TriState area and maybe nation-wide.
