Shelley Farmer had been aware of First Tee for years. She’d seen the commercials during PGA
Tour events. But it wasn’t until playing golf with a friend while wintering in Florida she thought
about getting involved.
Her friend was very involved with First Tee — New Hampshire and thought Shelley would make a great coach. When asked if there was a chapter in Iowa, she wasn’t sure. A quick internet search after the round lead her to our website. Within a week she’d signed up to be a volunteer coach.
Shelley has coached for First Tee — Central Iowa for two seasons. Her primary location is at
Woodland Hills Golf Course, which is close to her house, but she’s also helped at Warrior Run
in Norwalk and Copper Creek in Pleasant Hill. Wherever we needed her, she was there.
After a 30-year career as an investment manager at Wells Fargo she didn’t feel as though she
was contributing to society/giving back. Volunteering with First Tee fills that void and gives her
great satisfaction helping the kids.
She explains, “I find it very fulfilling being a coach – to see the progression of the kids in their
golf and behaviors. I’m happy doing it and it makes me feel like a better person. I tell people
about it all the time.”
Shelley has even gone to certification training to achieve the status of a Level 1 First Tee
Coach. This allows her to lead delivery of certain levels of First Tee curriculum. This makes her
even more valuable to our chapter than she already was.
We can’t thank Shelley enough for her time, effort, in caring for our participants and helping us
Build Game Changers.
If you’re interested in becoming a First Tee coach, contact our program director, Mikayla Olson
at [email protected].