Interning with ANNIKA

Greetings!

This is Jaclyn Garris of the 2011 DeVos Sport Management Program. I attended Elon University where I majored in Leisure and Sport Management and minored in Business Administration. When I am not in one of my DeVos Sport Management classes at UCF, I am intern outside of the DeVos program for the ANNIKA Foundation as their Projects Manager Intern. Hall of fame LPGA golfer, Annika Sorenstam, founded the ANNIKA Foundation to focus on two goals: teaching kids the importance of fitness and nutrition and getting youth involved with golf. It is through her passion and support that we are able to touch the lives of many young people throughout the United States and Sweden.

This past weekend, on May 22nd, I was a part of the leadership team that hosted an event called the ANNIKA Junior Day in Memory of Holly Baxter at the ANNIKA Academy. The Baxter family made a generous donation to the Foundation to make a junior event possible. We had 80 kids ranging in age from 6 to 16 attend the event. There were four stations set-up: full-swing taught by Annika and her sister Charlotta, putting, chipping, and fitness where the kids got to climb up a rope and hit the Easy Button on top of the ceiling! Annika also held a clinic for all the juniors on the golf range and dazzled them with her unbelievable shot accuracy and long drives off the tee. The DeVos family supported our efforts that day by helping organize and direct the kids throughout the day. A big thank you goes out to: Christi, Devan, Joel, Joslyn, and Rodrigo for all of their help.



Front Row (L to R): Joslyn Dalton, Annika Sorenstam, Jaclyn Garris
Second Row (L to R): Cristi Ecks, Joel German, Rodrigo Quintanar, Devan Dignan

In addition to the Junior Day event, I help with the communication, marketing, and planning efforts for the Foundation, which has provided a tremendous learning experience thus far. I am extremely proud and honored to be a part of the ANNIKA brand and team. I hope that you take a look at the ANNIKA Foundation website to learn more about upcoming events and initiatives.

Fairways and Greens,

Jaclyn