At the age of 16, Beckett Jones is barely old enough to drive. However, he’s already made a lasting impact on his community and appears primed to continue doing so for years to come.
The Naperville resident is a junior at St. Francis High School in Wheaton, where he plays on the golf team. During the summer, he competes in various American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) and Illinois Junior Golf Association (IJGA) tournaments.
Simply playing the game at a high level isn’t enough for Jones, though. For four years, he’s been utilizing the game to help others.
“A Franciscan value is being part of community and giving to community,” Jones explained.
It began with an idea hatched alongside his mother Jen. Realizing that equipment cost is a barrier to entry for many potential golfers, Jones sought to collect used golf clubs and donate them to those in need. What started small – Jones admitted he wasn’t sure if anybody would donate – has evolved to thousands of clubs collected and disbursed in recent years.
“[The clubs] were in the garage and it was like, ‘Holy smokes – that’s a lot of golf clubs,’” Jones said with a chuckle.
One of the beneficiaries of Jones’ donations was the CDGA, which houses used clubs at the Bob Berry Sunshine Course at Midwest Golf House to have on-hand for those in need who play the course. After a few initial equipment donations, Jones arrived last March with something other than a trunk full of clubs – a check.
Jones had taken his benevolence to the next level. He decided to participate in the AJGA’s Leadership Links program, which encourages junior golfers to fundraise for charitable organizations of their choice. Jones chose the CDGA and CDGA Foundation for the role they play in using golf to change lives close to home.
“The CDGA is a great organization and it's [my] homebase,” Jones said. “I didn't really want to do something that was more national or out of state when there's something in state that really runs Illinois golf.”
Through outreach to friends and family, Jones collected more than $4,000, which he donated to the CDGA Foundation last spring. In late February of this year, Jones doubled his impact with another check of roughly the same amount – in addition to another carload of clubs.
The self-proclaimed “patriotic” Jones views CDGA Sunshine Programs that serve veteran communities as the main beneficiary of his hard work.
“I've seen the impact that veterans have and the di iculty they have coming back from serving our country,” Jones said. “I really wanted to make an impact for them.”
Jones’ community impact isn’t limited to golf. He also volunteers at a local food bank with friends frequently and helps distribute meals at a local shelter with his dad, Dave, annually.
Jones credits his parents for instilling his generosity and providing the support necessary for him to make an impact.
“[My parents] are always supporting, always loving, always there for me,” Jones said. “That’s why I feel like I've been able to grow to the person that I am today, through their care. They've been there every step of the way.”
The next step is to be determined. Jones is in the phase of high school where college and career plans are in the early stages. He is at this point, however, leaning toward pursuing a medical profession.
“[The medical field] really has an impact on people,” Jones explained.
In just 16 years of life, Beckett Jones has already helped to transform his community. With compassion at his core, there’s no telling the ultimate impact he can have.
“I think that's the best we can do as human beings – to try and better our world and have a good impact on it.” —Casey Richards