Henry keeps Sandy Hook families in mind

KAPALUA, Maui » J.J. Henry put on a white golf cap that prompted questions because of the four letters stretched across the front.

That was the whole idea.

S.H.E.S.

Perhaps it was only fitting that Henry wore the cap during the pro-am round Thursday at the Tournament of Champions, for it was the same day some 400 students who survived the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School returned to classes at a different school building in a neighboring Connecticut town.

"A couple people have asked what the letters stand for, and a few others have figured it out," Henry said after stepping out of the rain at Kapalua. "It’s a way to help remember and think about the families."

And what better PGA Tour winner to wear the cap than Henry.

He grew up in Fairfield, Conn., about 20 miles south of Newtown. His aunt lived for years around the corner from Sandy Hook Elementary. Henry remembers when his middle school basketball team played games at Chalk Hill, where the Sandy Hook students now go to school.

Henry doesn’t know any of the families in Newtown, but he considers them neighbors. He carries the Connecticut flag on the PGA Tour, and the connection is strong.

"This is just a way to honor those families. And growing up there … to have something happen like it did, you’re almost at a loss for words," said Henry, a three-time Connecticut State Amateur champion. "Being the first tournament of the year, in a beautiful place like Hawaii, a lot of those people are cooped up in their houses in freezing cold or snow. If they happen to be a golf fan and see it, maybe they could say that all PGA Tour players are thinking about them."

It’s a small gesture that Henry hopes can grow into something much bigger. Already this week, he received an email from Nathan Grube, the tournament director of the Travelers Championship in Hartford, Conn., about what they can do.

The PGA Tour also is waiting for plans to unfold, with Travelers taking the lead as the tour’s only stop in Connecticut. Henry, who went to school at TCU and lives in Fort Worth, Texas, already has the "Henry House Foundation" that targets children, and he has a special skybox at the Colonial. He is thinking about another skybox specifically for the families of Sandy Hook this summer at the Travelers Championship.