Momentous Work Continues Without One Particular Golf Tournament
Mike McKinley proud to lead Salesmanship Club of Dallas into a hopefully much better 2021
Canceling a nationally-known, signature fundraiser doesn’t set the preferred tone for celebrating a century of service.
But like so many pandemic-pestered philanthropic organizations, the Salesmanship Club of Dallas didn’t get much choice this spring.
Still, even without the AT&T Byron Nelson PGA golf tournament, club members remained determined to see that their beloved Momentous Institute got the support needed to meet the growing demand for mental health services and education support.
“We saw and understood the needs in our community were greater than they had ever been,” said Mike McKinley, the club’s 101st president. “Our tournament team immediately pivoted to mitigate costs, adjust our fundraising appeal to convert sponsorships to donations, and rescheduled some of our ancillary events, such as our Operation Appreciation pro-am.”
Momentous Institute staff also pivoted, transitioning to online classes for students and teletherapy for clients.
“The amount of care and dedication by our staff to ensure the families we partner with get the tools, support, and services they need is unlike any other,” McKinley said.
McKinley, founding partner in the law firm of Shackelford, Bowen, McKinley & Norton, LLP, has 40 years of experience in banking, business, and corporate law and has belonged to the club since 1992.
What’s your proudest moment as a club member?
I have quite a few “proudest moments” as a club member. They all involve the way our club members respond to adversity.
I can think of two great examples. The 2011 Nelson suffered a brutal overnight hailstorm after the first round. Most of the greens on the golf course were heavily damaged by golf-ball to tennis-ball-size hail. No one thought we’d be able to finish the tournament. About 60 of our members joined the Four Season’s golf course crew at 4 o’clock in the morning and used flashlights, lanterns, and divot repair tools to repair the pitch marks and other damage on the greens caused by the hail. Instead of canceling the tournament, the greens were repaired sufficiently for play to resume – and only 2 hours late.
Four years later, in 2015, torrential rains slammed the golf course overnight after the second round causing flooding on several holes. There was so much water, almost every bunker on the golf course was washed out. Salesmanship Club members joined the golf crew in the wee hours of the morning and helped to pump water (and some fish!) out of the bunkers. After the bunkers were drained, new sand was brought out, and our members helped rebuild the bunkers and replace the sand. Once again, the tournament was saved, and the Saturday round started after only a 3-hour delay.
Give us a fun fact. What’s something about you most people don’t know?
I am a huge Parrot Head. This was only the second year in the last 30 that I did not attend a Jimmy Buffett concert.
For nearly 40 years, People Newspapers has worked tirelessly to tell the stories—good, bad, and sublime—of our neighbors in the Park Cities and Preston Hollow. To support our efforts, please contact advertise@peoplenewspapers.com for advertising opportunities. Please also consider sharing this story with your friends and social media followers.
