GREENSBORO — When Reynolds Plantation announced its need for volunteers for the Big Break Invitational golf tournament at Great Waters earlier in the year, Bill McIlwaine saw an opportunity. McIlwaine is a resident of Reynolds Plantation, but also leads Tri-kids Inc. a 501c3 nonprofit organization that works with 102 kids in three locations in Georgia. The Tri-Kids location in Greene County, consists of fifteen members ranging from age 9 to 18 that compete in Triathlons while living by the motto of “Dream.Believe.Achieve.”

“To stay on the team, the kids must make academic progress,” explains McIlwaine. “If they have an A, they must maintain that. If they have a C-, bump up to a C+. They also must do charity work to learn the importance of giving back to the local community.”

As for the charity aspect, The Big Break Invitational gave the opportunity to do just that. Plus, they got the exposure to athletes who have worked incredibly hard to get themselves to a competitive level of the game. That exposure definitely came with the price of putting in some hard work.

“I thought, ‘this combines a number of things,’” explains McIlwaine regarding the Big Break Invitational. “It was a chance to show there are some amazing kids in Greene County and it is definitely a unique way to have the kids give back to the community. It wasn’t your ordinary trash pickup.”

And so Bill got the volunteer forms and had them filled them out; 19 of them for the members of his Tri-Kids team, coaches and volunteers. And when the event rolled around in late September, the kids jumped to their assigned task of being official (standard bearers) scorers for the event. They even got the chance to meet NFL legend, Jerry Rice, a definite bonus for a select few of them. They also took a few photos with the iconic Big Break rock and met with players from Golf Channel’s nationally-televised event. The youngest of the group, 9 year old Arkiyus Wright, probably said it best when he told McIlwaine after his volunteer shift, “Coach Bill, this is the life!”

Member John Vail, who worked with Tri-Kids Daisy and Melody, was left with a solid impression. “These young ladies did a great job of carrying the ‘big score card,’” said Vail. “We were lucky to be with Jerry Rice for eighteen holes. And the two young ladies were just so thrilled.” “Everyone was really impressed with how these kids performed,” says McIlwaine. “I mean, this is tough work. You carry this metal sign around a golf course for five hours straight with the sun coming down on you. It was definitely a big job for them.”

But hard work for a Greene County Tri-Kid is just a part of the normal routine.

Tri-kids is a program based on the premise that every child deserves a chance to succeed if they work hard and commit. The vehicle used for the program is the triathlon, consisting of swim, bike and run. “Many who start the program can’t swim and are even afraid of the water,” says McIlwaine. “It isn’t for everyone, but it’s amazing to see these kids cross the finish line and see the rewards of all their hard work. We’ve even gotten the parents involved with it as well.”

The non-profit originally started in Atlanta in 2005 by McIlwaine’s friend, David Dashiell. McIlwaine helped Dashiell in the setup of the program and the group has since partnered with Urban Perform of Atlanta which is supported by volunteers from the Arthur Blank Foundation and with Eagle Ranch in Flowery Branch as well.

This summer the team had the exclusive use of the AAA Triathlon training camp in Groveland, FL for 5 days. The camp is run by, world renowned, professional triathlon coach John Hovius. Among his many activities, Hovius does fitness testing for all of the NBA teams and some Major League baseball teams. Hovius told McIlwaine “let’s just say your kids outperformed most of those professional athletes in their fitness tests.”

In 2010, McIlwaine was preparing to relocate to Reynolds Plantation full-time from his home in Atlanta and wanted to start a Tri-Kids program in Greene County. At lunch one day, a business associate encouraged Bill to speak with Reynolds Plantation resident, Rob Mitchell, who connected him with Mike Daniel at Atlas Ministry. “That was instrumental to getting a bridge built with the Atlas program,” says McIlwaine. “We thought, ‘Why start something new that could potentially compete with the efforts of a strong established organization?’”

Atlas Ministry, Inc. is a non-denominational Christian organization that is also based in Greensboro, Ga. Formed in 2006, the group serves as a community resource working with families who are committed to setting their lives on a healthy and productive new path. The Tri-Kids mission was very comparable to Atlas and thus the two have worked together on a number of programs, including a new college path initiative that is tailored to the high school kids of Greene County.

“What’s great is that we work with kids from every school in the county,” says McIlwaine. “Our goal is to give every kid an opportunity to learn to work hard and succeed.”

As for Big Break Invitational – that definitely could be considered a success for this talented and hard working group of kids. And now that the volunteer committee has had a group of tri-athletes working for them, the Tri-Kids just might get more opportunities to volunteer in the future than they ever imagined.