J. Wood Platt is pleased to welcome Kale Beers as the new Director of Development to the Trust staff as Lindsay Myers, former Director of Development, takes on a new role as Director of Scholar and Alumni Engagement. Expanding the J. Wood Platt team is critical as the Trust and the Golf Association of Philadelphia continues to expand its reach.
Mark Peterson, Executive Director of J. Wood Platt states, “We are excited to have Kale Beers join our JWP team as the new Director of Development. His background, expertise, and enthusiasm will help the Trust strengthen our culture of philanthropy and raise the funds needed to support and expand our programs in the years ahead.”
Kale Beers was a member of the La Salle athletic administration as director of athletic development for 25 years. Beers has also been the “Voice of the Explorers” for 26 years and will continue to do so. In his role with Athletic Development, Beers’s primary focus was the cultivation of major gifts and engagement of alumni to support La Salle Athletics. Beers also serves as executive producer of all audio streams of Explorer Basketball.
Prior to taking on his development duties, he spent eight years as the director of athletic communications where he oversaw all aspects of sports information, public relations, game day management, and was the primary webmaster for GoExplorers.com. Beers is the longest-tenured play-by-play man in the Big 5. He has called over 800 Explorer events including men’s/women’s basketball and football since 1996.
His career began as a junior at La Salle when he secured an internship with the Philadelphia Phillies’ Phanavision and Video Services Department. He continued to work in the Phillies’ through the 1996 season before building a resume as a play-by-play broadcaster and media relations director for the minor league affiliates of the Phillies, Cleveland Indians, Pittsburgh Pirates, Anaheim Angels, and the Kansas City Royals.
Beers is a veteran of the U.S. Army, in which he served six years (two in active duty) as a Cavalry Scout.
He resides in Plymouth Meeting with his wife Suzanne and their children Kimberly and James David (J.D.). He completed his master’s in education from La Salle in 2012. He has also served as an adjunct instructor in the Communication Department for eight years.
J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust
The J. Wood Platt Caddie Scholarship Trust was created in 1958 by the Golf Association of Philadelphia through the efforts of then President Walter A. Schmidt; Leo Fraser, President of the local section of Professional Golfers Association of America; and Albert Keeping, Golf Professional at Gulph Mills Golf Club. It was named in honor of Philadelphia’s premier golfer of the era, J. Wood Platt. Not only was Mr. Platt an accomplished player, but he was also the Trust’s co-founder and first contributor. To date, more than 3,800 young men and women have received $24 million in aid from the Trust.
GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The Association’s 288 Member Clubs and 75,000 individual members are spread across the Eastern half of Pennsylvania and parts of New Jersey and Delaware. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
