Our staff holds varying backgrounds and expertise, but we all serve one purpose: breaking the cycle of poverty through education. This week, meet some of our Boston-based staff members.
With offices in Anaheim and Irvine, California, Washington D.C., and Boston, the Tiger Woods Foundation team has plenty of moving parts. Each staff member brings a unique perspective to our mission and a different story to tell. In our new staff series, we will be introducing you to those who bring Tiger’s vision for the foundation to life. Meet the second three in our series: Pat Hurley, Carolyn Romano and Jon Knochel from our office at TPC Boston.
Pat Hurley, Senior Director of Operations
Pat is hitting a milestone in 2015 with celebrating his 10th year in the Deutsche Bank Championship operations department and two and a half years at TWF. Each of his days are filled with challenges to accommodate the thousands of fans, sponsors, staff and media at TWF’s three PGA TOUR events as well as fundraising events.
“Working and seeing the impact of our work with local communities is what I appreciate the most about working with the Tiger Woods Foundation,” Pat said about his tenure with the organization.
Behind every tournament build is the knowledge that TWF’s signature events allow low-income youth nationwide to receive educational opportunities.
Pat noted that his favorite memory thus far with the foundation was visiting the flagship Tiger Woods Learning Center in Anaheim, where more than 35,000 square feet of STEM activity give underserved youth an opportunity to learn more.
“Seeing where all of our hard work on the tournaments and events goes back to, the students and educational programs, is the most rewarding part about working for the foundation.”
Carolyn Romano, Event Coordinator
Carolyn works with one of the proudest groups on TOUR: The Deutsche Bank Championship “Blue Crew.” She leads the 1,500-strong volunteer team in the months leading up to the Labor Day weekend celebration and assists with on-site events during tournament week.
After months of planning and a whirlwind week at her first DBC in 2014, Carolyn remembers standing on TPC Boston’s 18 green and reflecting on the hard work paying off.
“What I find most rewarding about our events is knowing that everyone is working hard to achieve the same end goal: To raise money for the Tiger Woods Learning Centers and Earl Woods Scholarship Program.”
Jon Knochel, Director, Corporate Partnerships
Jon’s pride for the Deutsche Bank Championship and TWF events aligns with Boston fans’ admiration for “title town.”
“I value having the opportunity to work at world-class sporting events in multiple markets, while also helping underprivileged students achieve something they may not have otherwise been able to,” Jon said when asked about working for TWF.
The culmination of the team’s dedication to hosting another phenomenal event drives Jon to improve and enhance the experience, year to year.
“Watching it all come together is awesome. I get to see our operations team essentially build a city on a golf course, help our partnerships teams deliver companies everything they asked for and then some, and watch the communications team bring our tournament to life through social media.”
“Then, when I see the look on the kids’ faces when they are at the tournaments and realize this is all being done for them, I love it!”
When the curtain rises and the tournaments are open for business, Jon proves to TWF clients that it was all worth it. Golf provides a flair for the dramatic, as he has noticed alongside some of the foundation’s friends and supporters.
“During the first round of my first DBC, I was on 16 green at TPC Boston with a few clients. We watched Tiger, Phil and Adam Scott all knock it within three feet of the cup on the signature par-3 and heard the crowd go bananas.”
