The golfing gods work in a variety of ways and Lashunda is proof. Over the years a series of injuries, trauma, and surgeries left Lee physically weakened, mentally strained and in need of rehabilitation. Her therapist advised her to continue with exercises that would help her range of motion. “I tried to think of ways to continue my therapy and I was driving down the street one day and I saw this man had a whole bunch of golf bags (with a few clubs) lined up on his front lawn and he was selling them,” she recalled. “So, I stopped and bought a $20 golf bag and clubs.” She started swinging the clubs and later added golf balls to the process. Golf became a source of physical and emotional therapy. “For the hour or so that I was out there I noticed that swinging those clubs at those balls took my mind off everything. All I wanted was to see my ball go straight and high. I kept working at it and the ball would go straight and high.” In 2022, she attended a PGA HOPE session at The Turn, in North Olmstead and was hooked. She immediately professionalism is felt right away as soon as you walk in. The instructors are friendly and very understanding.” She is still relatively new to the game and all its terminologies, rules and nuances. “There is so much to learn,” she said. “When I started, I didn’t know anything. Now I know the difference between a sand wedge and a pitching wedge, what a slice is, what a mulligan is.” Recently, Lee attended National Golf and Wellness Week in Washington, D.C. and had the opportunity to play 18 holes at Congressional Country Club. “What a place,” she said of the site of five major championships and numerous stops on the PGA Tour. “Everything was perfect. There wasn’t a blade of grass out of place. It was an honor to play at a prestigious historical course.” It is a long way from Shaw High School, to Congressional Country Club, plus it is a long way from the U.S. Army to the PGA HOPE program. With her background and experiences, she is the perfect choice to work with NOPGA HOPE. The golf gods work in a variety of ways. entered the PGA HOPE program and has never looked back. “I didn’t know what to expect when signing up for the PGA HOPE Program. Will I be the only woman? Will there be any triggers? Or how will the instructors react if I make a mistake?” she said about her decision to investigate PGA HOPE. “I was afraid to get involved. But I didn’t want to remain in that little shell either and that’s why I decided to see what it was all about. So, a friend of mine agreed to go with me to the first PGA HOPE class I went to and she has gone every time.” Her repeated attendance has brought comfort and the knowledge that help is out there. “PGA HOPE is a safe place,” she said. “It is a safe place for women. It also left her with a clear understanding of what injured/ abused/disabled veterans experience. “I didn’t know anything about golf and nothing about the PGA HOPE program,” she said. “But what I learned right away is that it has a love and passion for veterans and the game of golf. The level of Ohio Golf Journal
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy MTQ2Nzk4