Napa · Solano County · California
The crown
is yours.
We provide
the pathway.
Real credentials. Living wages. A community that has walked where you're standing — and came back to show you through.
Napa · Solano County · California
Real credentials. Living wages. A community that has walked where you're standing — and came back to show you through.
Who Are You?
Ages 15–25. Napa or Solano County. No matter where you're starting from — we built this for you specifically.
Philanthropists, employers, county partners. The pipeline is already being built — your investment activates it at scale.
Probation officers, school counselors, social workers. Refer a young person in under two minutes. David responds personally within 72 hours.
The Program
A coach is assigned within 72 hours. We come to you. Intake, assessment, barrier removal — no ID, no transportation, housing instability. We work through it with you, not after you solve it yourself.
Matched to a credential pathway that fits who you actually are — your interests, your strengths, the life you want. Training in sectors that pay living wages. Real certifications.
Employer placement. Your first paycheck above minimum wage. A career — not just a job. Welding. HVAC. Phlebotomy. Marine electrician. The credential is yours.
Our graduates come back as mentors. Some become coaches. When a young person says "I can't" — the person across from them says "I did." That is not motivation. That is evidence.
Year 2 Results
Mare Island's shipbuilding corridor will need hundreds of certified welders within 24 months.
Scored top 10% nationally on certification boards. Was offered a teaching position.
Now teaches at a Bay Area barber college. From student to educator in one year.
Hands-on trade credential. Stable employment is the single most documented protective factor against recidivism.
Entered the culinary field professionally. Food service is among the fastest-growing sectors in the region.
Launched a certified personal training business at a private gym. A business owner. In Year 2.
The Math Is Not Complicated
The Opportunity
After decades of dormancy, the former naval shipyard in Vallejo is undergoing one of the most significant economic redevelopments in Northern California history. The employers are already at the table. The timelines are set. The workforce pipeline to fill them does not yet exist.
Building a credentialed workforce takes 18 to 24 months. If that pipeline doesn't start today, those jobs will go to workers recruited from elsewhere — while Vallejo and Solano County youth watch from the outside.
Legacy Rising is making sure that does not happen.
RESTART Vallejo · FOA-ETA-26-17
RESTART Vallejo is a U.S. Department of Labor application currently pending federal approval. If funded, it activates the first 400-youth pipeline in the larger regional effort — focused on Vallejo and Solano County's most underserved justice-involved youth over 42 months.
A Legacy Rising Program
A 9-hole leadership and entrepreneurship program built around the game of golf — open to students in grades 7–12 and young adults ages 18–25 in the Napa Valley region.
This is not a golf lesson. It is an induction into a way of thinking, building, and carrying yourself that most young people in this region have never been given access to.
Participants earn college credit through Napa Valley College. No GPA impact. No barrier. They build a personal network of Napa Valley business mentors. They compete in a Final Round Tournament. And they walk away with something that stays with them long after the round is over: the knowledge that they were always supposed to be here.
A Legacy Rising Program
Entrepreneurship, Leadership & Networking Through Golf
Fairway to Success is an innovative youth leadership and entrepreneurship program that uses golf as a platform for developing confidence, communication skills, professional networks, leadership capacity, and entrepreneurial thinking.
The program serves young people ages 15–25 who may have limited access to mentors, career opportunities, and professional networks. Through golf instruction, mentorship, experiential learning, and entrepreneurship education, participants gain practical skills that prepare them for success in education, employment, business, and life.
The golf course becomes the classroom.
The relationships become the curriculum.
Why Golf?
Golf is one of the few environments where a young person can spend several uninterrupted hours walking alongside successful professionals and entrepreneurs. The game naturally encourages:
How It Works
Participants are introduced to a leadership, entrepreneurship, or communication skill — giving them the framework before they step onto the course.
Participants immediately apply the skill through golf activities, role-playing exercises, and real mentor interactions on the course.
Participants discuss what they learned, receive feedback, and identify opportunities for growth. This cycle repeats each week to reinforce confidence.
Core Themes
Participants learn to believe in their abilities, communicate effectively, and step outside their comfort zones — one hole at a time.
Professional introductions, active listening, guided conversations, and public speaking — practiced with real mentors in real settings.
Participants learn how to build authentic relationships and expand their professional networks through intentional mentor connections.
Identifying opportunities, solving problems, and thinking creatively — participants develop an entrepreneurial mindset beyond the classroom.
Participants learn how to lead themselves and positively influence others — starting with how they show up on the first tee.
Meaningful relationships with community and near-peer mentors who provide guidance, encouragement, and support throughout the program.
The Curriculum
The Mentor Model
Provide career insights, networking opportunities, and real-world perspectives over multiple rounds on the course.
Provide encouragement, relatability, and support while helping participants navigate educational and career pathways.
Student Learning Outcomes
Demonstrate professional communication and networking skills.
Deliver an effective personal introduction and elevator pitch.
Apply entrepreneurial thinking to identify opportunities and solve problems.
Build meaningful relationships with mentors and community leaders.
Create a personal leadership and career development plan.
Demonstrate confidence and professionalism in community settings.
The Ultimate Goal
The goal of Fairway to Success is not simply to teach golf. The goal is to develop confident, connected, capable young leaders who understand their value, recognize opportunities, build meaningful relationships, and create positive futures for themselves and their communities.
The crown is already theirs.
Fairway to Success helps them learn how to wear it well.
Built With
Fund the Pipeline
We are asking you to fund a pipeline that is already being built — by people who have spent 25 years earning the trust of the young people, the systems, and the employers in this region.
One young person's full credential pathway — training, coaching, and barrier removal
Five youth through the Crown Pathway — REACH · RISE · REIGN · RETURN
Near-peer mentor infrastructure for one program year — the mentors who prove the pathway is real
Regional partnership activation — MOUs, employer alignment, training provider coordination
Anchor investment in the 1,200-youth regional pipeline — naming opportunity available
"Every king and queen has a crown. Legacy Rising provides the pathway and the skills to wear it well."
— Legacy Rising
Get Started
Founder & CEO · Legacy Rising
📱 707.812.5727
✉️ legacyrising.napa@gmail.com
25 years of direct service inside the schools, probation offices, and communities of Napa and Solano County. The relationships that built this organization were earned, not awarded.
Refer a Young Person
Probation officer, counselor, or school staff? Text David directly — he reviews every referral personally and responds within 72 hours.
Text: 707.812.5727