Mirams Named Recipient of USGA-AJGA Presidents’ Leadership Award
William Mirams of Stroudsburg, Pa., was named a 2019 recipient of the USGA-AJGA Presidents’ Leadership Award, the USGA and American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) announced.
The USGA-AJGA Presidents' Leadership Award honors one male and one female junior golfer annually who demonstrate leadership, character and community service through their involvement with the Leadership Links program: a joint initiative founded by the USGA and AJGA in 2005 to further develop junior golfers through volunteerism.
“I hope to inspire others and show them that helping people in your community is paramount, especially when you are fortunate enough to have the time and ability to do so,” Mirams said. “I want them to know there are so many people in the world who need help, and in doing your part the world becomes a better place for the people around you.”
Mirams, 17, and Lauryn Nguyen of Seattle, Wash., will be honored on June 24 at the Polo Golf Dinner of Champions at Liberty National Golf Club. Additionally, they will each receive tickets to a future U.S. Open.
About William Mirams
Mirams’ connection with golf began with his late grandmother. She taught him everything he knows about the game and inspired him to pursue it every day. When she passed away from breast cancer, he decided to start a charity in her honor. He called it the Doreen Mirams Charity in her honor.
“I created this charity to relieve patients of financial burdens that they may have outside of the hospital,” Mirams said. “This is so that when the patient stops treatment it is easier for them to get back on their feet and continue with their life.”
Mirams used the memories he has playing golf and spending time with his grandmother to create a children’s book titled “Golf, Grandma and Me.” Using the book as a launch point, he began raising money for those affected by breast cancer.
Through sale from the book and a golf tournament Mirams works tirelessly to put together each year, he has raised more than $100,000 in four years.
“I am most proud of the golf tournament I host,” Mirams said. This event takes a lot of time, effort, and community support. This is our sixth year and each year the event has grown and helped me provide even more support to cancer patients.”
Through Leadership Links, he also raises money for the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation and volunteers with the Lehigh Valley Hospital.
“I want to raise money to help people going through tremendously difficult times both spiritually and financially,” Mirams said. “My family has gone through the awful times of having a family member suffer from cancer. I know how important support and help is when it matters most.”
USGA-AJGA Presidents' Leadership Award – Past Recipients
2018
Gerry Jones Jr. (Suffolk, Va.)
Grace Chen (Sunnyvale, Calif.)
2017
Grant Fairbairn (Orinda, Fla.)
Haley Bookholdt (Columbus, N.J.)
2016
Daniel Berlin (Chagrin Falls, Ohio)
Angelica Harris (Harvey, La.)
2015
Nick Leibold (Littleton, Colo.)
Hannah Berman (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.)
2014
John Hayden (Birmingham, Ala.)
Dree Fausnaugh (Maitland, Fla.)
2013
Patrick Cover (Huntersville, N.C.)
Divya Manthena (Camarillo, Calif.)
2012
Brandon Pierce (Covington, La.)
Cassie Wang (Lenexa, Kan.)
2011
John Farese (Sayville, N.Y.)
Natalie Turk (Franklin, Tenn.)
2010
Drew Johnson (Oak Ridge, N.C.)
Jacqueline Calamaro (Newtown Square, Pa.)
2009
Zach Herr (New Hope, Pa.)
Emily Gimpel (Lafayette Hill, Pa.)
2008
Smylie Kaufman (Birmingham, Ala.)
Kelsey Conway (Ventura, Calif.)
About Leadership Links
Since 2009, the Leadership Links program has helped more than 2,500 junior golfers make a difference in their communities by generating more than $2.2 million in charitable contributions to more than 2,000 charities and the AJGA's Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant.
Leadership Links is a program that allows the AJGA to further its mission to help develop young men and women by teaching charitable-giving skills and service-oriented practices at an early age. This program gives juniors all the tools necessary to donate their time, talent and resources to local charities and the ACE Grant. Visit www.ajga.org/ll for more.
About the USGA
The USGA celebrates, serves and advances the game of golf. Founded in 1894, we conduct many of golf’s premier professional and amateur championships, including the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open. With The R&A, we govern the sport via a global set of playing, equipment and amateur status rules. Our operating jurisdiction for these governance functions is the United States, its territories and Mexico. The USGA Handicap System is utilized in more than 40 countries and our Course Rating System covers 95 percent of the world’s golf courses, enabling all golfers to play on an equitable basis. The USGA campus in Liberty Corner, New Jersey, is home to the Association’s Research and Test Center, where science and innovation are fueling a healthy and sustainable game for the future. The campus is also home to the USGA Golf Museum, where we honor the game by curating the world’s most comprehensive archive of golf artifacts. To learn more, visit usga.org
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About the AJGA
Celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2018, the American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls, ages 12-19) of more than 6,900 members from 50 states and 60 foreign countries. Through initiatives like the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant, a financial assistance program, and Leadership Links, a service-oriented platform that teaches juniors charitable-giving skills, the AJGA fosters the growth of golf’s next generation.
TaylorMade-adidas Golf became the AJGA’s National Sponsor in 2016 after more than 25 years of support. Rolex, which is in its fourth decade of AJGA sponsorship, became the inaugural AJGA Premier Partner in 2004. In 2017, adidas joined the AJGA as a Premier Partner, serving as the Official Apparel and Footwear of the AJGA.
AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 900 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Rickie Fowler, Sergio Garcia, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson, Patrick Reed, Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Tiger Woods, Paula Creamer, Ariya Jutanugarn, Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Brittany Lincicome, Anna Nordqvist, Inbee Park and Lexi Thompson.