ABM/McGraw-Hill Charity Golf Tournament Advances ABM’s Causes…on One Front

It was a beautiful day at The Country Club of New Canaan in New Canaan, CT, on Monday, 8/13. After a barbecue lunch and iced-tea on the patio, spirits were high for what would be a spirited day of golf, tennis, and, in the end, charity. Personally, there was little more I could ask for. I’m proud of the 70 or so people that gave up one day of the work week to support the BPEF internships. That might sound cynical, but I’m being completely serious: it’s hard to give up a work day sometimes, especially for the people at the tournament. Many CEOs/top executives were present, including Ted Bahr (BZ Media), Andy Goodenough (Highline Media/SBM), Bob Carrigan (IDG), Steve Palm (NewBay), and several others. I haven’t talked with ABM about the final numbers, but I’m anticipating an impressive haul.

Despite the success of the day, I left the Country Club in an extremely sour mood. One of the agenda items that has been on ABM’s list for many years is to encourage women and minorities to join business media companies and to participate at ABM. I’m not a proponent of diversity for diversity’s sake, but I did not see one non-white face in the field on Monday, and it left me feeling a tad uncomfortable. It’s these kinds of events, the ones where rivals bond over links and drinks–and not the almost mandatory conferences and committee meetings–that forge real connections, and foster real inclusiveness.

I think the solution is a change in venue, and a broader invitation list. I am not accusing the country club of racism or anything like it. I will tell you, though, that I felt extremely uncomfortable there. I’m not sure why this supposedly classy place was dismissive of me at every turn, but I suspect it had something to do with my youth and the fact that I’m “not from around there.” For me, the definition of class would be making people around you feel comfortable; by that definition, the Country Club of New Canaan has little.

On a somewhat unrelated note, I was also embarrassed by the way some members of our party treated the staff at the Country Club. I realize that they were there to serve us, and, after all, it’s a job for which they get paid. But they are also people, and deserve to be acknowledged as such, and not just service drones. To me, this includes (but is not limited to) saying thank you after you bark orders at someone, and, perhaps making eye contact once in a while. But maybe I just don’t know how to behave at a fancy club.

(ABM is an organization that I’m very glad to be involved with. They do some fantastic work, and, under the leadership of Gordon Hughes, I believe that the heart of the organization is in the right place. That’s why it hurts me to see things like this go on behind relatively closed doors. That’s why I’m acting holier-than-thou in this posting. After all, if journalists aren’t holier-than-thou about things like this, who would be?)