Operation Shower Teams With Comcast Business to Celebrate Military Moms in Jacksonville

Days before THE PLAYERS Championship kicked off at TPC Sawgrass, 40 military moms and moms-to-be gathered with their loved ones inside Patriot's Outpost for a special event that packed surprises into every moment. Operation Shower, the nonprofit dedicated to hosting celebratory group baby showers for military families, partnered with Comcast Business and THE PLAYERS Championship to pull off what became the 15th consecutive year the tournament has teamed with the organization in Ponte Vedra Beach.

Presented by THE PLAYERS Championship and its Proud Partners, Optum, Morgan Stanley, and Comcast Business, with support from Chicco and the Jim & Tabitha Furyk Foundation, the event carried a golf-inspired theme that nodded to the tournament setting. Due to rain, this year's shower took place at the PGA TOUR's Global Home, an exquisitely decorated venue that welcomed all guests and kept everyone dry and comfortable. The shower was emceed by Barbie T of 95.1 WAPE and featured a delicious lunch catered by Outback Steakhouse, guest speakers, raffles, and games, along with the highlight of the event: the distribution of Operation Shower's signature Showers In A Box.

Each mom received an array of unique, high-quality products and gift items for mothers and babies donated by generous organizations, including THE PLAYERS Championship, Optum, Morgan Stanley, Comcast Business, the Jim & Tabitha Furyk Foundation, Delta Children, Chicco, Diaper Genie, AngelCare, 95.1 WAPE, and CSX. The full name behind the microphone was Barbie T Whitmire, co-host of "The Dex and Barbie T Morning Show" on 95.1 WAPE in Jacksonville.

Comcast Business sponsored the golf-themed event and provided the new parents with brand-new laptops. Michelle Oyola McGovern, Vice President of Government Affairs at Comcast Florida, attended Operation Shower and spoke about the gift for the moms in the room. "The person who needs to be connected more than anyone is a mom. Moms need to be able to connect with their spouses overseas. They need a laptop to upload and share baby pictures," McGovern said. "Taking care of the moms is just as important as taking care of the babies."

THE PLAYERS Executive Director Lee Smith framed the day in terms of shared sacrifice. "We are thrilled to once again team with Operation Shower to express our tremendous gratitude to all of these remarkable women for their service and sacrifice," Smith said. "In the military, families serve too. In partnership with our Proud Partners, Optum, Morgan Stanley and Comcast, we are honored to start these families off with many of the essentials they will need for their new bundles of joy, along with some wonderful gifts and a day of fun and celebration."

The families at Operation Shower went home with everything they could need for their new babies, including baby bouncers, diaper trash cans and strollers. When the sheer volume of gifts overwhelmed what cars could carry, Comcast Business technicians Ken Merritt and Brandon Booth joined to help families unable to bring all their gifts home. They loaded up Comcast Business trucks with items and personally delivered them to their residences.

Comcast's commitment extended beyond the shower itself. The company also partnered with THE PLAYERS to bring 50 Duval County students to the PGA TOUR Global Home during championship week, where they spent the day exploring careers and networking. Samuel Waltzer, Comcast's senior manager of government affairs in Northeast Florida, announced that Comcast Business would gift each student a new laptop to support them on their education and future career journeys. Separately, Comcast Business donated $25,000 to Operation New Uniform, named Charity of the Day, an organization that helps service members and veterans find new careers in the business world.

Operation Shower's mission is to host fun-filled baby showers for military families to ease the stresses of deployment and separation. Having been a PLAYERS partner since 2024, Comcast Business has now woven that mission into one of professional golf's most high-profile weeks on the calendar, turning a rain-forced venue change into an occasion that, by all accounts, nobody in the room wanted to leave early.