We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tiffany White a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Tiffany, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?
The mission of the Ted Rhodes Foundation is to preserve and honor the legacy of my grandfather golfing pioneer and golf trailblazer Theodore “Ted” Rhodes by empowering underprivileged youth through the game of golf. We strive to provide access, resources, and opportunities that foster life skills, discipline, career readiness, and community engagement. Through education and mentorship, we aim to inspire the next generation to achieve their full potential both on and off the course.
Tiffany, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
The Ted Rhodes Foundation (TRF) was founded in 1993 by mother Peggy Rhodes-White to keep her father’s legacy alive and make an impact in the golf industry by diversifying the game. My grandfather is the 1st African American Professional Golfer in the modern era to play in the US Open (1948). He won over 150 golf tournaments during his career and led a group of golfers to take the PGA to court so African Americans would be allowed to play the game he loved golf. They won the lawsuit, but then the tournaments were changed to invitationals. He was the golf coach to boxing great Joe Louis and mentored many up and coming golfers, such as Lee Elder -1st African American to play in the Masters and Althea Gibson-professional tennis player. He was finally granted posthumous membership to the PGA IN 2009. There is a golf course “Ted Rhodes Golf Course” that bears his name in his hometown of Nashville, TN in the Metrocenter area. During his 1st Masters win in 1997, Tiger Woods credited Ted Rhodes and other golf pioneers for paving the way for him to play golf.
My grandfather’s vision was to make the game of golf open to all races. TRF is solving the problem of the lack of diversity in the golf industry. Through our Future Golfers of America “Growing the Champions of Tomorrow” Program, TRF is honoring his vision by introducing the great game of golf to youth in the urban areas. We are creating pipelines of minority golfers and minorities working in the golf industry by hosting career development events such as Toastmasters Youth Leadership Program, golf clinics, golf tournaments, and educational events for youth between the ages of 5-18 years old. Our Ted Rhodes junior golf tour has given youth the ability to get competitive playing experience, enhance their communication and leadership skills, and connect with other youth that play golf. Our 2025 Ted Rhodes Junior Golf Tour will consist of Chicago, IL, Nashville, TN, Jacksonville, FL, Tulsa, OK and other cities to be announced.
TRF partners with local urban youth golf programs, such as the First Tee of Tennessee, First Tee of Greater Chicago, First Tee of North Florida, and First Tee of Tulsa. We have a new relationship with the Boys & Girls Club of Middle TN and seeking to partner with additional community organizations and public school districts across the country to expand our reach and offer golf clinics, etc..
TRF provides financial support to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) golf programs and golf team members to help further this mission. HBCU golf programs have limited funding and support is need to sustain these programs. We connect high school golfers with HBCU golf coaches to ensure they continue to play golf in college. Our 1st partnership was with Fisk University (Tennessee) and have just added Wiley University (Texas) as our 2nd partner. More HBCU partnerships to follow.
In addition to focusing on the youth, TRF conducts golf clinics for adults to introduce the game to people that want to learn how to play this great game for personal reasons or professionally.
TRF hosts an annual charity golf tournament to raise funds for youth programming and golfers participate from across the country. The event is the 56th Annual Ted Rhodes Charity Golf Classic and will be held September 5-6 at the Ted Rhodes Golf Course. There will also be a one-day golf outing for corporate representatives/sponsors to support TRF on September 4th at the Ted Rhodes Golf Course.
I am blessed that TRF has made a significant impact on the golf industry and will continue to expand our efforts nationally to continue the legacy and impact!
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Running a small non-profit organization is not easy or for the faint at heart, and especially not easy for an organization that is focused on golf. Unfortunately, golf is not considered a popular sport.
There is a continuous need for funding to run non-profit organizations so you get great experience learning how to think out of the box. Programming cost money and to run a well organized and high impact program funding is essential. We have to pay golf courses, instructors, meals, equipment, etc.
Therefore, we rely on grants, corporate sponsorships, and individual donor for support. The aforementioned funding sources are not always consistent. Therefore, you have to look at unique ways to fund the organization and identify the right resources to assist with the process. This process keeps me on my toes and continually allows me to leverage my previous extensive experience in the banking industry. I worked at JPMorgan Chase Bank for 18 years and learned great tools!
I have learned over the years that business owners need to be resilient and persistent to be successful. I learned about resilience from my mother Peggy Rhodes-White who is an Entrepreneur and when she started the TRF she faced a lot of obstacles and she did not let that stop her from keeping her father’s legacy alive. She fought to get him inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, Tennessee Golf Hall of Fame, posthumous membership to the PGA, just to name a few.
I am resilient because I do not let “no” be the final answer. There are grants that TRF was not awarded and although it is disappointing, I just move on to another grantor and know funds are out there for TRF. The markets in which we serve are not always supportive of our efforts and we keep pushing on AND do not let that stop our efforts. I have been persistent in my efforts to identify new sponsors, new partners, build relationships, and retain existing partners. Fortunately, I am a spiritual person and my prayers and meditation which has helped me to stay sane and positive.
We are currently seeking new partners and sponsors. I am excited about the opportunity to get additional support so that we can make an even greater impact.
It is my life long goal to continue the legacy of my grandfather and to make a difference in the lives of youth in the urban areas. I will not let anything or any person stop me. I am unstoppable!
How’d you meet your business partner?
I am so blessed that my business partner is my mother Peggy Rhodes-White. My mother was a trailblazer in the pharmaceutical industry as one of the first African American female pharmaceutical sales reps. I learned so much from my mother including professionalism, high performance, strong communication skills, and how to stand up for yourself in the workforce, how to be an entrepreneur, and how to be fearless.
Running TRF with my mother has truly been a pleasure! I learned a lot about how how to run the organization and the importance of relationships. Since she founded TRF in 1993 and worked tirelessly to keep my grandfather’s legacy alive, back in 2019 I figured it was my time to step up and give her a break and run the organization under her guidance. Of course she will always be my boss and her expertise is important to TRF. We work well together AND glad she is my mom!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.tedrhodes.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/golflegendtedrhodes
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiffany-white-m-ed-dtm/
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/tedrhodesgolf
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@tedrhodesfoundation7948
Image Credits
Ted Rhodes Foundation