Parents of the “Birdie Sisters” thank WE CAN, INC. for June 28th golf outing
Say golf is a very expensive sport
THE LITTLE BIRDIE SISTERS PHOTO ATTACHED !
The WE CAN, INC. Committee, headed by former Chicago Board of Education President Florence Cox (rear) poses with the "Birdie Sisters," Erica Jackson, 14, (front left) and her sister, Myah, 12, both students at the Mark T. Skinner West Elementary School in Chicago, IL. WE CAN, INC. businessman Herbert Hedgeman (left) and J.W. Smith, retired CPS coach and principal, pose for a photo at the offices of Hedgeman, 8036 S. Cottage Grove. The WE CAN, INC. Committee is hosting a golf outing Thursday, June 28, 2012, at the University Golf Club, 23520 Crawford Avenue, University Park, IL 60484. Shotgun Starts: 10 a.m. and dinner is from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Part of the proceeds will go towards purchasing outfits and equipment for the "Birdie Sisters" who have gained nationwide fame for their golfing talents. The girls' parents, attorney Marsha Ross-Jackson and dad, Eric Jackson, thanked the WE CAN, INC. Committee for helping further their daughter's golfing career. For further information, call: 773-651-1200 or register at: http://www.wecanorg.biz/. (Photo by Chinta Strausberg)
Eric Jackson (upper right) and his wife, Attorney Marsha Ross-Jackson, the parents of golf super stars Myah Jackson, 12, and Erica Jackson, 14, thanked the WE CAN INC. Committee for hosting a golf outing on Thursday, June 28, 2012, at the University Golf Club, 23520 Crawford Avenue, University Park, Il 60484. The couples son, 7-year-old John Jackson, wants to be a baseball player so he can be on TV. All three children are getting "A's" and "B's" in school. Mr. Jackson said it will take an entire village to help his girls golf champions. (Photo by Chinta Strausberg)
Parents of the “Birdie Sisters” thank WE CAN, INC. for golf outing
Say golf is a very expensive sport
By Chinta Strausberg
The parents of the famed “Birdie Sisters” late Saturday thanked the WE CAN, INC. Committee for hosting a golf fundraising outing where some of the proceeds will go towards enhancing the careers of these up and coming Chicago grade school students who have taken this sport to another level.
They are known as the “Birdie Sisters,” but the nation is fast learning more and more about eighth grader Erica Jackson, 14, and her sixth grade sister, Myah, 12, both of whom attend the Mark T. Skinner West Elementary school in Chicago.
They are mastering the art of golf at a very young age but under the watchful eye of their parents, attorney Marsha Ross-Jackson, a mother of three, and her husband, Eric Jackson. The couple has a third child, John Jackson, 7, a first grader at the LaSalle II Magnet School, who unlike his sisters, wants to be a baseball player. “I always wanted to be on TV for my whole life,” he said.
Interviewed at the office of businessman Herbert Hedgeman at 8036 S. Cottage Grove where he was joined by Florence Cox, president of the WE CAN, INC. Committee, and J.W. Smith, a retired CPS administrator and coach, Mrs. Jackson said the girls began playing golf ten-years ago but she pointed to her husband as the one who pricked their interest in golf.
The WE CAN, INC. Committee is hosting a Thursday, June 28, 2012, golf outing at the University Golf Club, 23520 Crawford Avenue, University Park, Il 60484. Part of the proceeds will go towards buying the “Birdie Sisters” golf outfits and equipment. Shotgun starts at 10 a.m. and dinners is from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Different levels of sponsorships are still available. To register for the golf outing, click on: http://www.wecanorg.biz/.
When asked why is the WE CAN, INC. Committee supporting the “Birdie Sisters,” Cox, who is the former president of the Chicago School Board, said, ‘We are supporting them because all too often we find young children from our community are involved in sports like this or other activities and they don’t have the kind of support from the community that they deserve. We are trying to fill the gap on behalf of the community,” said Cox.
Hedgeman said, “I am always proud to support young athletes who are trying to make a way for themselves in the athletic world. These young ladies exemplify the kind of athletes we are concerned about in our community. I wish them well, and I’m sure they will accomplish many things that the whole community will be very proud of.”
J.W. Smith, a retired CPS administrator and football coach, said Mr. Jackson was one of his student champion football players. “I generally follow them throughout their lives. When I heard about his daughters, I immediately stepped up and said what can we do for you. We helped you along. What can we do for these girls now? I knew he was struggling and needed some help.”
Smith added, “We believe a strong athletic program is a strong program for life, academics and otherwise. The discipline involved and the coordination, the studying and all of that make champions. He’s aware of that, and he has instilled that into the girls,” he said referring to Mr. Jackson.
Mrs. Jackson works at the Chicago Kent College of Law as the assistant dean of student professional development/diversity. She is also a lecturer and is the executive director for the Institute for Law and the Workplace. When asked why did she choose golf for the girls, Mrs. Jackson said it was her husband’s idea.
“I’m an avid sports person,” Mr. Jackson said. “I was looking for a sport for the girls…. We wanted to have sports in their lives to bring a direction sooner than later. Sports brings about that maturity a lot faster,” he said referring to the discipline and concentration they need to succeed.
“We actively sought out a sport and it ended up being golf. It was a logical decision because there are very few minorities in golf and the opportunities are overwhelming. I believe that the first minority golfer to bring notoriety to the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) will go to the history books,” said Mr. Jackson.
When asked if his decision had anything to do with Tiger Woods, Mr. Jackson said, “It had a lot to do with Tiger Woods to put it in perspective of the way that he changed” golf, “the way he brought attention to golf, the way that he brought minority people” to the forefront. “He is one of the few minority people who said he wasn’t a minority and got away with it. We have a passion for winners and we claimed Tiger and that’s just that.
“He had an influence. He has a lot of influence on things he doesn’t realize,” Mr. Jackson said. Asked if his girls look up to Tiger Woods, Jackson said, “They are average girls, and they probably like Justin Bieber more than they like Tiger Woods…. They are little girls….” Mr. Jackson said pointing out that Myah likes the Twilight vampire movie that is about a teenage girl falling in love with a vampire. “It is buy Twilight clothes, not Tiger Woods clothes. They are pretty grounded.
“We are not going to be overwhelmed by golf,” Mr. Jackson said. “That won’t every happen. We won’t have to worry about burning out. We’re still easing into the game. There are aspects of it that we haven’t even touched on yet. We very seldom watch golf on TV because we don’t want to overwhelm our life…consume our life with golf right now,” Jackson said.
When asked if he were the coach for his daughters, Mr. Jackson said he has a professional swing coach for that task because he doesn’t play golf. That is why six-years ago he hired Alexis Mihelich who is the women’s golf head coach at the Southern Illinois University. “When we say we need lessons, she comes home. She has been a great help to us.”
Other than playing golf, the girls said they want to be a veterinarian because they love and have a passion for animals.
Asked if it’s true that the Birdie Sisters are winning game after game, Mr. Jackson said, “Only with the help of the community.” “From the beginning, celebrities always sponsored minorities to play golf. There hasn’t been a family or an individual who has come from the ranks…. It’s a very expensive game and it’s going to take a village to raise a minority champion.”
When asked what are his goals for the “Birdie Sisters,” Mr. Jackson said, “to be well rounded people; to be able to move out. That’s a profound statement for kids now days. I want them to be able to have a degree to be able to have a mortgage and to be able to run a life responsibly and sports has a lot to do with setting goals, realizing goals, realizing failures and what you need to do to improve on those failures.”
Mr. Jackson thanked the WE CAN, INC. Committee for extending a helping hand to his daughters in their quest to become champion golf players and role models for their peers. Jackson said it would literally take the community’s help working to ensure his girls are champions.
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Mark S. Allen
Chairman Of The Board/Acting Executive Director
Black Wall Street Chicago Organization
Chief of Staff To National Chairman Rev. Michael Carter
National Black Wall Street USA
4655 South King Drive, Suite 203
Chicago, Illinois 60653
773-392-0165
markallen@blackwallstreet.org
Mark S. Allen recently included in the 2012 Edition of Who's Who In Black Chicago as "one of Chicago's Most Influential Voices In The Black Community (-- and member of The WE-CAN Organization !)
Chairman Of The Board/Acting Executive Director
Black Wall Street Chicago Organization
Chief of Staff To National Chairman Rev. Michael Carter
National Black Wall Street USA
4655 South King Drive, Suite 203
Chicago, Illinois 60653
773-392-0165
markallen@blackwallstreet.org
Mark S. Allen recently included in the 2012 Edition of Who's Who In Black Chicago as "one of Chicago's Most Influential Voices In The Black Community (-- and member of The WE-CAN Organization !)
https://theblacklist.net/
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