Karen Henderson developed such a strong sense of team with her Notre Dame Academy golf players she inspired a former golfer to skip a national tournament appearance in favor of a Pandas team bonding retreat.
It was the summer of 2010 and Notre Dame senior Angela Pugliano could have been competing in Charlotte, North Carolina, at the AAU Golf National Championships. She chose to be with her Pandas teammates instead on a retreat to Perry Park Country Club, where coach Henderson gathered the team for a two-day, overnight stay at a rented house.
“The AAU would have been nice,” Pugliano said at the time. “But I felt like being with my teammates is more important. I’m a captain. I need to be a leader. I wanted to be here.”
Coach Henderson lauded Pugliano, saying she was a role model for teammates. Pugliano was learning from one of the best. Henderson’s ability to set an example by instructing, encouraging and inspiring golfers with her deep knowledge of the game and infectious enthusiasm is a gift that will keep on giving, long after her passing.
“We have unfortunately learned of the passing of our beloved friend and coworker Karen Henderson,” World of Golf wrote on its Facebook page Wednesday. “Karen worked at World of Golf as a shift manager for many years but was a much greater presence than that in our small golfing community. Our thoughts and prayers are with her family and those that knew her well at this time. Rest easy friend.”
Henderson, also Notre Dame’s assistant athletic director, became ill prior to the 7th Region girls golf tournament. She was not in attendance at the Sept. 24 event on Pioneer at The Golf Courses at Kenton County. Notre Dame was directed by varsity assistant coach Anna McCord at the tournament and finished regional runner-up.
Henderson passed away on Tuesday. Notre Dame held a prayer service for Henderson Wednesday morning. A moment of silence was observed prior to Wednesday night’s 9th Region volleyball championship final won by the Pandas at St. Henry.
“Today our community is mourning the loss of a beloved colleague, our Assistant Athletic Director and longtime Golf Coach, Karen Henderson,” Notre Dame principal Jack VonHandorf said in a statement. “Karen touched the lives of so many students, parents, faculty and staff at NDA over the last 15 years. Karen had been courageously battling cancer the last few months and her strength, resilience and spirit have
been a true inspiration to us all. Her passing is a sudden and profound loss for the entire Notre Dame Academy family.”
Henderson, 69, was a friend to many and the Wilder resident leaves a lasting legacy in the local golf community. She was equally adept at coaching kids, teenagers and adults. Her players believed strongly in her leadership while Henderson was guiding Notre Dame to conference and regional championships. At one point, the Pandas won eight straight regional crowns. Former players returned as assistant coaches under her direction. Others became friends with the coach in adulthood. Many stayed in contact with her. She made new friends with each new involvement, and Henderson was involved in a lot of things with seemingly boundless energy.
Henderson was a First Tee of Greater Cincinnati coach, but she was known for giving free lessons. She was a staple at World of Golf, owned by the city of Florence and operated by Landrum Golf. But she was also a devoted mother and grandmother. For nearly 30 years, she was a lab manager at TriHealth, a full-service, not-for-profit health system providing a wide range of clinical, educational, preventive and social programs. It was a perfect fit for the ever-helpful Henderson, who attended college at Miami University. She graduated from Middletown High School in Ohio in 1973.
Henderson was imbedded into the local golf community but was plugged in socially well beyond the reaches of golf. She had friends in many circles, and she liked bringing them together. She was particularly adept at finding jobs for people. Henderson once steered the father of a former player to a future place of employment.
“We have the best coach,” one Notre Dame player said to me three years in a row.
Not only was Henderson a First Tee coach, she also was a Girls Golf Site Director. She was a former co-director of the LPGA USGA Girls Golf of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. Henderson was a chair for the Queen City LPGA Tournament. She was a member of the Kentucky Golf Coaches Association board of directors. Henderson held other important positions in golf. She won many coaching awards. She coached several area high school golfers of the year and sent dozens of Notre Dame players on to college programs.
Henderson was adept at inspiring her players, but she also gave them every tool available to be successful individually and as teammates. She instituted a point system at Notre Dame in which players accrue one point for every round below 80 and 10 for medaling. It was a way to determine who plays in what order. “It’s a way to make it fair because the girls actually make the decisions about the order,” Henderson said back then.
Under Henderson’s direction, Notre Dame fielded a first-ever freshman team. The coach repurposed an old storage room at the school and turned it into an indoor practice facility which included a putting green. She began providing lesson plans for each golfer. “The girls take the plans out on the course and work on their own,” Henderson said while explaining her strategy. “They know their tendencies and their strengths and weaknesses better than anybody. They add a coach, because what better person is there to help coach yourself than yourself.”
One year, Henderson wanted to put a new set of eyes on her players. She added LPGA teaching pro Kim Hilbert as an assistant. Another year, the KHSAA made a rule allowing limited use of distance-measuring devices. Henderson made sure Notre Dame players wore GPS watches when allowed. The coach introduced them at one of the Pandas’ preseason retreats. Former NDA players insist that Henderson’s personalized preseason golf retreats are one-of-a-kind moments in their lives, memories they won’t soon forget.