Willard (Will) Kari has had a lot of success in his life since graduating from Montague High School in 1960, and over the past few years it's enabled him to give back to the Wildcats, particularly the golf teams, with sizable donations. He recently helped make possible a well-equipped room in the school's new athletics arena that will provide Montague players an indoor practice space - a room that's now known as The Will Kari Golf Room.
The new room features a pair of golf simulators, enabling players to work on their technique during the winter and other times the weather precludes outdoor practices.
"He's the most fitting person to be associated with golf in Montague," said Chuck Townsend, one of Kari's high school golf teammates. "Willard had more to do with showing Montague what a golf team supported by the high school could be. Until he did that, golf was something to do, but no one was really that serious.
"He was Mr. Golf, no doubt about it, and the finest golfer I ever golfed with. People talk about woods and irons making up their set of clubs, but Willard could've played a heck of a round of golf using a putter."
Kari was part of the creation of the Wildcats' golf program as a student, when he and fellow classmates who were interested in playing pitched the idea to then-superintendent Mark Townsend, Chuck's father. Chuck, who joined the team late (he was already playing baseball in the spring), ended up being paired with Kari when Jack Bendelow, the Old Channel Trail club pro who coached that first team and is now the namesake of the annual Bendie Cup fundraiser for the program, noted that Townsend for whatever reason seemed to play better with Kari.
Kari was a star player for the team; he said the best round he could recall shooting in high school was a 68, at White Lake Golf Club. He continued playing regularly and was a nearly everyday player in the summers until a few years ago, when arthritis in his shoulder made it more difficult. He said he regularly shot in the mid-60s at Old Channel Trail during his prime playing years and has won the Bendie Cup multiple times in the past.
Kari is now retired and lives in Texas with his wife Sharon. An excavating contractor during his career, Kari sold a landfill permit in the 1980s for a sum that enabled him to retire. He said the permit is now operated by a company called Waste Connections - his royalties from the sale steadily increase each year, which helps fund Kari's philanthropy - and anticipates the permit will still be in use dozens of years from now. The couple also has a home in Tannery Bay in Whitehall and spends summers in the White Lake area.
Post-pandemic, Kari was contacted by a family member who works for Montague Area Public Schools to gauge his interest in donating money to help the district purchase new scoreboards. When Kari told Sharon about the correspondence, she suggested Will contribute to the golf team.
"'You played golf and it did something for you when you were a young man. Why don't you give back?'" Kari said his wife told him. "I thought that was a good idea, and I'd contact someone to see who I need to send money to."
It wasn't long before current Old Channel Trail club pro Chris Cullen introduced Kari to girls golf coach Phil Kerr, and ever since Kari has contributed to both the boys and girls programs. The Wildcats were already making waves by then, having won the 2020 girls state championship and on the way to repeating in 2021, but Kerr said the support has been instrumental in further growing the program and developing its players.
"His contributions have enabled us to go above and beyond what we could do with our fundraising," Kerr said. "It's enabled us to focus on traveling and going to big events, which requires money. It's been huge for us to not have to really worry about finances when we think about how to challenge these girls. It's been awesome."
Kari and Kerr have corresponded regularly since, and when Kari became aware Montague was interested in adding a golf room to its new arena, he wanted to help. Last summer while Kari was back in the White Lake area, the duo was making their way around the course in a golf cart when the topic came up again and Kari asked how much the room would cost.
"(Kerr) said, 'We'll be in the vicinity of $20-30,000,'" Kari said. "I said, 'I'll just take care of it up to $30,000.'"
"I've just been blown away," Kerr said of the support. "You never expect anything like that. We obviously get great support from the community, but talking numbers with him and him being completely on board to (help with) a state of the art facility for us, it's been a humbling experience. You don't feel like, regardless of anything we've done, you deserve the kind of support he's giving."
The new room will be a huge asset to the Montague program, Kerr said. The Wildcats have occasionally borrowed the Viking Athletic Center's indoor golf space for off-season work in the past, but obviously the Whitehall team gets priority use of the facility. Having their own room to use whenever it's needed creates scheduling certainty the Wildcats will be grateful to have.
The simulators, of course, are the crown jewel of the room. In addition to giving players more chances to work on their technique, Kerr said in his experience it's much easier to hone swing changes away from the higher-stress atmosphere of the course.
"Golf is a skill development sport," Kerr said. "It's basically a race to the imaginary 10,000 hours you need to master something...and now you have the chance to put in some of those hours in the winter. We'll accelerate the growth of the kids in our program. It's easier to work on skill development inside, when they're not so focused on the direct results and the scores they're shooting."
In addition to the obvious tangible benefits of Kari's giving, Kerr said his story sets a great example for up-and-comers in Montague to see what is possible from the White Lake area.
"I think it's really cool to see someone who came from humble beginnings in Montague and has gone on to great success," Kerr said. "I'm sure many people can say that, but to have someone look for ways to give back to the school and the community, it's a tremendous thing. We'll make sure to keep him recognized for all he's doing, and hopefully we'll make him proud with some more achievements."
