Best and Brightest shine locally, but not nationally

The event was the Kickoff Party and Scholarship Fundraiser for the 15th Montgomery County Amateur Championship, which will take place July 29, 30 and 31. As is custom, the new junior scholarship winners were announced. They are the 42nd, 43rd and 44th young stars of Montgomery County. The winners of the Boys Junior Championship and Girls Junior Championship each receive a scholarship from the Dave Marshall Memorial Scholarship Fund each year. But this is another level of scholarship. It comes from the Harry Mirabile Memorial Scholarship Fund and it is awarded for academics, sportsmanship and service to the community.

Young golfers, who competed in the previous Junior Championships, submit their resumes to a Selection Committee. The winners are then chosen.

This year I had the pleasure of introducing three new scholarship winners. The number was more than the typical number, in recognition of the 15th anniversary of the event.

Gregory Welsh is in his final months at Wissahickon High. He has been on the distinguished academic honor roll throughout high school, with 4.0 grade point averages in his freshman and sophomore years. He volunteered for three years, helping younger golfers at Sunday Golf Camp and participated in the Stars Peer Tutoring Program at Wissahickon High. All of this, while become a standout golfer – all-league, club junior champ and tied for fourth in the Montgomery County Junior Championship.

Michael Sydnes still has another year at Radnor High School but has compiled an outstanding resume. He has a 3.91 GPA that also has him as a regular on the distinguished honor roll. He volunteers at the Waverly Heights Retirement Community and also works with the March of Dimes. He finished sixth in the Montgomery County Junior Championship last year and is a seven-time winner on the PGA Junior Tour. At Radnor High he earned the Coaches Award for Sportsmanship.

Jenna Soranno won a Harry Mirabile Memorial scholarship a few years ago. A second scholarship – a Further Education Scholarship – after distinguishing herself as a leader in her program and announcing her intention to go to law school. Her dream ais to rise to a leadership position in one of golf’s ruling organizations.

Each year the resumes of the applicants are so impressive that the panel of judges is faced with a daunting task.

“I am so amazed when I read

through the qualifications of the kids who apply for these scholarships,” says Paul Lanoce, an area business leader who is the Junior Scholarship Chairman and now spends most of his time in Delray Beach, Florida. “I feel honored to be associated with such fine young people. It gives me hope for the future of the game … and the future of our country.”

Susan Battaglia, daughter of the late Harry Mirabile and another member of the Selection Committee, echoes the sentiments of Lanoce. “They all seem to have so many accomplishments, at such a young age. They make you feel proud.”

So, with those thoughts running through my head, I stood on the stage to introduce the new scholarship recipients to a large crowd that attended the fundraiser. I read their qualifications

and announced some of their plans for the immediate future.

Then, without any script or pre-rehearsal, the words came out of my mouth: “These are the Best and Brightest of Montgomery County. They are the future leaders of our society. In fact, they are probably better suited to lead us now than the candidates who are running for the highest offices in the country.”

The line got a chuckle from the audience. A pained, truth-hurts, anxious chuckle.

Those words kept echoing for the next couple of weeks. “The Best and Brightest.”

Do we really have the Best and Brightest running for public office? In our town? In our county? In our state? In our country?

If the answer is, “No,” it shouldn’t come as a surprise. Who really wants to subject themselves to the kind of scrutiny, daily inspection and mudslinging that we see in politics

… especially at the highest levels?

It makes one wonder about the motives of those who seek the highest offices. And, as we see many of the highest officials enriched beyond all imagination during their political years – and after – it becomes evident that the old term “public servant” has become a misnomer.

As we head down the stretch in this latest presidential election, it becomes quite obvious that the Best and Brightest have long fallen out of the race.

Why is it that a man like Joe Lieberman – a person of extreme moral conviction, intelligence and great service -- could not rise to the presidency? Why did the voters shun a war hero and decent man like John McCain? Or a successful business leader like Mitt Romney?

Why were decent human beings like Mike Huckabee, Ben Carson, Carly Fiorina and Rick Santorum unable to gain

any traction with in this year’s Republican scrum?

And why, after a long process of elimination, are we left with the current group of candidates? Are they really the Brightest and Best this country has to offer?

Americans have once again displayed their twisted adoration of celebrity by becoming fascinated with Donald Trump. While he may have some good ideas, he approaches the once-dignified Office of the Presidency with all of the grace of a carnival barker.

Polls already show that around 70 percent of all Americans regard Hillary Clinton as being untrustworthy. Yet she is the presumptive Democratic nominee, unless the FBI investigation of her e-mail and Clinton Foundation scandals get in the way.

And the Democratic alternative, Bernie Sanders, is a pie-in-the-sky Socialist with wild ideas that appeal to the young, naïve and uninformed.

There is no possible way of carrying out his biggest pledge to the voters – to break up the big banks. And his pipe dream of free college education for all is a con job – because somebody is going to have to pay for it. Guess who? And that is going to add another $3 trillion dollars to the debt.

The surging name for the Republicans is Ted Cruz. Again, a principled individual who stands by his convictions – even if those convictions are unpopular with many. But, haven’t we learned the perils of putting an unqualified, overmatched first term Senator in the White House?

After seven-plus years of Barack Obama, the United States in drastically worse shape in almost every category. Certainly in the categories of the economy, international relations, military strength, world stature and race relations his presidency will be viewed by history as a disaster.

That leaves John Kasich

– a decent person with executive experience and a successful record as Governor of Ohio. But, to once again illustrate the mindset of American voters, this qualified individual, by far, has the least chance of becoming president of any of the remaining candidates.

Best and Brightest? It looks like they are involved with just about every walk of life in America … except politics.

We have no trouble finding the Best and Brightest in Montgomery County. But don’t look for anyone with that tag at the Republican or Democrat Conventions this summer.