Pro Golfer, Ernie Els is Determined to Make a Difference for Autism

Ernie Els’s vision emerged from his own difficult experiences with his son. Ben’s autism is quite severe, and since Els often travels for competitions, he noted that it took some time for Ben to warm up to them and for him to better learn and understand how to communicate with Ben. Rather than simply putting in time or effort to help his own son, Els recognized that his experience was one shared by thousands of parents and families around the world. The difficulties he had adapting to his son spurred him on towards developing a place and curriculum that could be broadly helpful.