The Whitford Country Club hit a hole in one when it debuted its Whitford Charitable Fund Classic in 2011, and the hot hand continues today like a best ball tournament, keeping numerous area nonprofit organizations out of the rough.

“Instead of focusing on putting big prize money together for some pros, we hit on the idea of putting the money together for nonprofits that do good community work,” visionary board member Bruce Hockman said in the Chester County Community Foundation’s 2015 Annual Report.

That move has proven a rallying point for members, as “there is an excitement, an electricity and a synergy that comes from doing good works, and doing good works together,” Hockman added.

And it has rejuvenated local charities.

“Without organizations like the Whitford Charitable Fund in Chester County, we wouldn’t be able to serve the families that we serve,” Southeastern Pennsylvania Autism Resource Center (SPARC) Executive Director Corrine Murphy said.

While Whitford isn’t the driver, 5 iron, pitching wedge and putter all in one, it does play an integral role in keeping nonprofits like SPARC in the game. SPARC touches the lives of 125 different clients and their families each year while providing “social and feeding skills training to people who are as young as 2 years old all the way into their 50s and who may be anywhere on the autism spectrum.”

“We work with them, and we work with their family members, providing continuous service over each person’s lifespan,” Murphy explained.

“Whitford’s contributions also help us maintain highly-qualified staff. All of our clients are being served by behavior analysts with master’s degrees. This approach separates us from most other autism service providers across the country.”

That advantage, however, comes with a price tag.

“The treatments we provide have to be sustained across time,” SPARC Board Member Phil Duncan added. “There is no quick fix. A gift from Whitford allows us to sustain our services across time.”

It does that by easing the burden on clients, particularly those without insurance.

“Whitford Charitable Fund’s contributions go directly towards rent and our electric bill, helping us keep overhead low so the cost of our services aren’t such a hit on our private-pay families’ wallets,” he said.

SPARC is in its third year as a beneficiary, though the Whitford Charitable Fund extends much further than that. In its few short years, it has infused more than half a million dollars into 23 nonprofits that help their neighbors have a shot at a better life.

Another recipient is the pioneering Coatesville Youth Initiative.

“With their support, we are training youth leaders, enhancing family relationships, promoting prevention education and building collaboration in the greater Coatesville community! We could not do this very special work without partners like the Whitford Charitable Fund,” Executive Director Chaya Scott said.

And for the Whitford members who help drive the fundraising, every round is a satisfying one.

“There are lots of reasons to join a country club,” Hockman said. “We have found, more often than not, people want to help others. … If we can get the club to think that giving something back is part of the membership deal at Whitford, then we will have gotten something right. It’s a good thing to do.”

Read more about SPARC in previous VISTA Today coverage here.