PGA HOPE Carolinas Ambassadors

Colton Hensley and Harold Hill named PGA HOPE Ambassadors for the Carolinas PGA Section.

Veterans Colton Hensley and Harold Hill are graduates of the PGA HOPE Program, a program that aims to improve Veterans’ quality of life by enhancing their mental, social, physical, and emotional well-being.

As PGA HOPE Ambassadors, Hensley and Hill represent the Carolinas PGA Section and support their fellow Veterans in communities across the section during PGA HOPE clinics, training programs and events.

Key responsibilities for the new PGA HOPE Ambassadors include:

Attend PGA HOPE programming, graduations and PGA HOPE fundraising events.
Actively discuss and advocate for the PGA HOPE program; recruit Veterans in their home community; educate interested individuals about PGA HOPE.
Commit to a personal health and wellness regimen.
Commit to positively represent the PGA HOPE program and empower other Veterans to embrace healthier, more positive choices.

Colton Hensley and Harold Hill at the 2022 PGA REACH Carolinas HOPE Cup. - Kiawah Island, SC.

Colton Hensley and Harold Hill at the 2023 Carolinas PGA Super Show. - Greensboro, NC.

Get to Know Colton Hensley

U.S. Army (R)

Colton Hensley at a PGA Professionals HOPE Training at the Country Club of Lexington in Lexington, South Carolina, on March 29, 2023. (Photo by Caroline Riggs/Carolinas PGA)

Branch of Service: Army

Years of Service: 4 years

PGA HOPE Program: PGA HOPE Asheville

Favorite Hobby: Golf

See Hensley featured in the PGA HOPE National Golf & Wellness Week Recap (2022).

“I am incredibly thankful for the doors that PGA HOPE Asheville have opened for me. After completing the program, I quickly realized how beneficial it was to me. When I started the program, I was at my lowest point mentally. I had become unsociable and had given up golf altogether. PGA HOPE Asheville not only got me back into this wonderful game, but it has allowed me to share it with other Veterans. This program has drug me out of a hole that I thought would only get deeper. I genuinely look forward to our sessions every week and I’m more passionate towards golf than I ever was before. So many Veterans could learn and prosper from this program while gaining back a sense a camaraderie in the process. Thank you, PGA HOPE Asheville.” – Colton Hensley, U.S. Army (R)

There’s No Shame in Veteran Colton Hensley’s Golf Game

By Jay Coffin

Published on Tuesday, November 22, 2022

Colton Hensley high fives Troy Brin at the East Potomac Golf Links on October 14, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)

Colton Hensley is comfortable going anywhere the conversation leads during this nearly 50-minute interview.

“I feel like I have a valuable story to tell people,” he said.

Hensley’s story is one with many emotional layers. It begins with military service and evolves into deployment, tragedy, difficulty adapting to civilian life, drug addiction, jail time and an incredible rebirth thanks to family, sheer determination and a desire to get fellow veterans involved in golf.

“There’s no shame in my game,” he says.

The 34-year-old Asheville, North Carolina native is an open book. He no longer feels any shame from his past. He will answer any question with pure honesty, and with the help of his longtime girlfriend, Katrina, he will even fill in gaps and elaborate when certain questions become difficult to ask.

Hensley served as a Cavalry Scout in the Army for the 101st Airborne Division from 2009-13. While deployed in Afghanistan, he lost two of his closest friends from IED attacks – Sgt. Justin Officer on Sept. 29, 2010 and Cpl. Loren Miles Buffalo on March 9, 2011.

The survivor’s guilt was too much to handle. Hensley could not stop thinking about carrying the coffins for both Officer and Buffalo. He remembers every painful detail of having to load them onto an airplane to be flown back home to the U.S.

He was honorably discharged from the Army in 2013 and returned home to Asheville. He had ACL and MCL replacement surgery on his left knee, and that was his entry into drug addiction.

“When you get home, you start to let your wall down, and it hits you in a different way than you expected,” Hensley said. “It didn’t take me any time whatsoever to get addicted. Losing those guys took the air out of me. I was done.”

Hensley did anything he could to get his hands on painkillers. He knew how to get as much as he could legally, while also buying drugs off the street from money he collected by selling stolen items.

“I started hanging with the wrong people and before you know it, I was literally crawling through people’s windows to steal things to support my habit,” he said. He once was accused of stealing $12,000 worth of items from a house that included a laptop, camera, camcorder, luggage and snowboarding gear.

Hensley was in and out of a jail, but in 2014 he relapsed, violated the terms of his probation, and was sent to federal prison for two years after being charged with felony breaking and entering, felony larceny and felony obtaining property by false pretenses.

Life behind bars was just as awful as it was on the streets. The worst of his stay came after Hensley got into a fight and was sent to solitary confinement for a 45-day stint.

“I can’t say I was ever suicidal, but that was probably my lowest point ever,” he said. “You have nothing to your name, no contact with the outside world and nothing but crazy thoughts going through your head the entire time.”

Although Hensley has no shame and guilt now regarding his past, he experienced plenty of it during his darkest days.

“I constantly was trying to make guilt go away by using drugs as much as I possibly could,” he said. “Then I had shame for being locked up. People like me aren’t supposed to be here, but here I am. Now I feel worse about my service because I’m sitting in prison. A lot of guys went on to do good things, and here I am selling all my stuff to pay for drugs.”

Hensley finally got out of prison in early 2016 and, although he had lost everything, burned bridges and ruined relationships with his family, he vowed to do better. But several months later, he had another relapse. After getting pulled over, the officer noticed Hensley had prescription drugs in his possession. Back to jail he went – only this time, it truly was the best thing that ever happened to him.

Kevin Rumley is the program director for the local Veterans Treatment Court (VTC), which uses a team approach to help support veterans facing non-violent felony charges. Rumley worked with Brooks Kamszik, a court-appointed attorney, and together they got Hensley out of jail and into an inpatient rehabilitation center at the VA Medical Center.

After a month there, Hensley entered the two-year rehabilitation program that, he says, was “probation amplified to 100.” He had to wear an ankle monitor for 24 straight months, with regular drug testing.

PGA HOPE Ambassadors and PGA Representatives (L-R) which include; PGA of America Secretary, Don Rea Jr. PGA HOPE Ambassador, Chris Cordova, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Steve Reed, PGA HOPE Ambassador, John Harvey, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Mike Jaborek, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Colton Hensley, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Justin Weglinski, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Harold Williams, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Garret Hrynko, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Hollis Burkes, unknown, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Karen Cooper, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Dan Hon, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Jeff Bojanowski, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Sean Bowman, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Jim McReynolds, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Michael Moore, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Randy Halsey, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Roth Coleman, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Troy Brin, PGA HOPE Ambassador, Dallas Brekeen and PGA Professional, Brian Jones at the East Potomac Golf Links on October 15, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)

During that program Hensley heard about PGA HOPE, a flagship military program of PGA REACH, the charitable foundation of the PGA of America. PGA HOPE (Helping Our Patriots Everywhere) introduces golf to veterans to enhance their physical, mental, social and emotional well-being. Hensley had played golf in high school and was a good player, so when an opportunity came to play golf, get outside and have it be a part of his rehabilitation process, he was all-in.

Hensley didn’t have clubs – he had sold them years earlier for drugs. But that soon got sorted out, thanks to Brian Oliver, a PGA Life Member who is Asheville’s lead PGA HOPE instructor and a national instructor for the program.

“When you’re around veterans, their eyes tell the story and you could see in his eyes that he was in a dark spot,” Oliver recalls of his first meeting with Hensley nearly five years ago. “He needed some help.”

PGA HOPE Ambassador, Colton Hensley at the Congressional Country Club on October 16, 2022 in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)

Oliver remembers Hensley saying he hadn’t played much golf in the past, but Oliver could tell that wasn’t true. Hensley’s contact was pure. Hensley told Oliver that he had to attend because of his current predicament, but that he was committed to continuing with the lessons.

“When the six-week program was over, he said, ‘I want to do something in the golf business,’” Oliver said. “He was wearing a nice golf shirt, nice shorts and shoes, and he was hitting shots and focused on why the ball was going where it was going. He was a completely different person. I knew we had tapped into something.”

But even Oliver couldn’t have predicted it would end up as well as it has.

PGA HOPE Ambassador, Colton Hensley at the Congressional Country Club on October 17, 2022 in Bethesda, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)

Now a 4 handicap, Hensley has continued to be a part of the program, assists Oliver in recruiting other veterans – and then helps them once they are there. It’s one of the many reasons why Oliver nominated Hensley to represent the Carolinas PGA Section as one of 20 Ambassadors to participate in PGA HOPE National Golf and Wellness Week last month in Washington, D.C., hosted by Congressional Country Club.

“He’s taking more ownership, more leadership in the group,” Oliver said. “He and I became really close friends. It was the bond of golf that did it. He found golf in the right phase of his life. It’s been an amazing journey for him.”

Troy Brin and Colton Hensley at the East Potomac Golf Links on October 14, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)

Now, Hensley is a certified golf nut. He’s a supply technician at the VA Medical Center, and that line of work gives him direct access to speak to veterans about the PGA HOPE program. He chips and putts almost every day during his hourlong lunch break. He’s teaching his 3-year-old son Noah the game. He caddies a couple times a week at either Biltmore Forest Country Club or the Country Club of Asheville, and he plays about four rounds of golf a week but admits, sheepishly, “it’s probably even more than that.”

Hensley plans to take the 36-hole Player Ability Test at some point soon, with hopes of working full-time for the PGA HOPE program. He says he’d be crazy to leave the golf circle that has been so kind and helped get his life back on the proper path. He wants to stay in the game, he wants to continue to share his story – and he wants to give back.

Colton Hensley at the East Potomac Golf Links on October 14, 2022 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/PGA of America)

All is not perfect, however. Hensley knows that it never will be. There are still things that need to be rectified. He just recently received a paper from the Buncombe County Courthouse saying that all five of his felony charges had been expunged, a reward for staying clean well after finishing the VTC program. But that doesn’t erase all the damage.

“Some relationships have been mended and some, I don’t know if they ever will,” Hensley says. “But that won’t keep me from trying. I got a lot more to lose now and a lot more to live for. I keep that in the forefront of my mind and keep trying to drive forward.”

Written By: Jay Coffin, Golf Writer

Original Article HERE

Get to Know Harold Hill

Harold Hill 2021.

Branch of Service: Coast Guard

Years of Service: 31 years

PGA HOPE Program: PGA HOPE Charleston

Favorite Hobby: Golf

See Hill featured in the 2021 Herb Graffis Award – Carolinas PGA Section video (2021).

Life of Service

From an early age, Harold Hill has believed that he could make a difference in his community. While barely a teenager back in the early 1960s he became a member of the United States Sea Cadet Corps at the Charleston Naval Shipyard and in 1969 was selected the youngest Sea Cadet of the Year. Hill was offered the opportunity to attend the Naval Academy but instead chose to begin his college career at the College of Charleston where he became the school’s first black student to swim collegiately in 1972. He would later transfer to the Citadel where he eventually earned his bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts (1989) and his Master’s degree in Education (2002).

In 1976, he began his career in law enforcement as a patrol officer with the Charleston Police Department. Three years later, he gained a position with the SC Law Enforcement Division as a Special Agent assigned to narcotics enforcement where he served for seven years before returning to the Charleston Police Department and rose to the rank of Lieutenant before retiring in 2012 after a distinguished 35-year career in law enforcement.

While serving in law enforcement, Harold simultaneously served one weekend a month for 31 years in the Coast Guard Reserve as a Chief Maritime Enforcement Specialist working as the liaison between the Navy, BP Oil, Coast Guard, and Civilian Contractors. He conducted numerous assignments involving inspecting commercial ships entering the Charleston Harbor searching for stowaways and contraband, as well as compliance with Federal Regulations. Among the special operations that he was called to active duty were Operation Desert Shield, Operation Desert Storm, St. Thomas Virgin Islands hurricane relief efforts, and beach clean-up efforts after the Deepwater Horizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico. Shortly before retiring from the Coast Guard in 2011, Harold received the Navy & Marine Corps Commendation Medal for his untiring commitment to the massive cleanup efforts at the Pensacola Naval Air Station.

In 2016, at the age of 62, Harold decided to take a few golf lessons at Wrenwoods Golf Course on the Charleston Air Force Base. You could say that Harold became addicted to the game of golf and almost every day since he can be seen swinging a club trying to improve his golf game.

Back in early 2018, Harold was speaking to a retired Veteran that had participated in PGA HOPE Charleston. He was told that PGA HOPE stands for Helping Our Patriots Everywhere and that the program is the flagship military outreach program of PGA REACH. He became very interested when the Veteran shared with him that participation in the program can change, and possibly even save, lives. That afternoon, Harold called and volunteered to help serve his fellow Veterans that have disabilities.

After receiving the peer mentor training in early 2018, he has been instrumental in serving his fellow Veterans at Stono Ferry in the fall and spring and at Kiawah Island in the winter and summer. That fall, he was voted the Coast Guard Representative for PGA HOPE Charleston’s Veterans Committee by his peers. Later, he was selected as a lead peer mentor for the Kiawah Island site. This past May, when the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island hosted the 2021 PGA Championship, Harold was selected as a Hole Captain for the 5th hole which was the hole where the Veterans from PGA HOPE Charleston were serving. During the tournament, he coordinated the activities of over 30 Veterans.

This past fall, he was nominated by Kiawah Island Lead Professional, Josh Wagaman, to become a PGA HOPE Carolinas Ambassador for the Carolinas PGA Section. Wagaman added, “Harold has been a true role model not just for fellow Veterans but also for the PGA Professionals in the program. Simply put, Harold has exemplified what it means to be a PGA HOPE mentor. Harold’s compassion and leadership in his role with PGA HOPE is really just a carryover from his career in the military and in law enforcement.”

Much to Hill’s surprise, he was selected by the PGA REACH Carolinas committee from among the 15 nominees. In mid-October, he attended the PGA HOPE National Golf & Wellness Week along with 19 other new ambassadors from PGA sections across the country. Each day began early and ended late, filled with many aspects of golf and how the sport of golf can help change the lives of our Veterans and possibly save lives. The experiences and the lessons learned at the PGA HOPE National Golf & Wellness Week are something that Harold will hold near and dear to him for the rest of his life. He is externally grateful for such a life-changing experience.

During PGA HOPE National Golf & Wellness Week, the training revealed that he has post-traumatic stress, namely survivor’s guilt, which would be expected from a caring individual with a 35-year career in law enforcement and 31 years in the Coast Guard Reserves. The training provided him with some tools to be able to help himself as well as other Veterans.

Helping Veterans reintegrate back into society after military service and also helping to reduce the number of suicide victims in our community has been lifelong endeavors for him. He is fully committed to the mission of PGA HOPE and shares it every chance he gets with anyone that will listen. He adds, “No day would be complete without a discussion of golf and PGA HOPE.”

PGA REACH Carolinas Coordinator, Jessica Asbury added, “Harold has truly been a remarkable PGA HOPE Carolinas Ambassador. His eagerness to spread HOPE to our Carolinas PGA members and the Veteran community is impactful and we are very grateful to have Harold a part of the PGA HOPE Carolinas family.”

From a young age, Harold Hill wanted to make a difference in his community. He has done that, and his life of service has been a Godsend to many Veterans and the entire Lowcountry community.

Written By: Rich O’Brien, Golf Writer
Original Article HERE

For more information regarding PGA HOPE Carolinas, please contact PGA REACH Carolinas Coordinator Mia Hayasaki at mhayasaki@pgahq.com or at (336)398-2848.