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By John Maginnes
PGATOUR.com Contributor

GREENSBORO, N.C. -- There are moments in life that change your perspective. Sometimes you know it immediately. Other times there is a resonance from an event that seemed otherwise unremarkable, but the echoes vibrate into your psyche and take root.

Co-founder Pattie Petty accepts a check for the camp. The facility relies on private and corporate donations to provide outstanding medical care to children.

A trip to the Victory Junction Gang Camp is like that. You are immediately awestruck by the enormity of the effort that is taking place about 20 miles south of Greensboro. The NASCAR-themed park for children with every type of affliction continues to be an inspiration. The outing on Tuesday of Wyndham Championship week included Tim Petrovic and Bobby Labonte.

The outing had the usual pomp and circumstance of tournament week charity outings. There were the oversized ceremonial checks and the announcement that the Victory Junction Gang Camp would be the official charity of the Wyndham Championship.

Of course, this was huge news for the camp. Pattie and Kyle Petty, who founded the camp, spend much of their time raising the millions of dollars that it takes to keep the camp going and growing. Their passion for what has become an incredible project is nearly tangible.

Pattie took those of us in attendance on an abbreviated tour of the facility. As impressive as the facility is, it was her passion and ability to relate that inspiration that had the greatest impact on her attentive audience. It is obvious that she has poured every ounce of her heart and soul into enriching the lives of children.

Tim Petrovic visited the camp last week. He went on to finish tied for second in the Wyndham Championship.

The story she told of campers who have visited had a searing impact on those of us whose lives have been blessed. There is nothing magnanimous or condescending in her delivery. She exudes an energy and optimism that is contagious.

After leaving the camp on Tuesday afternoon, I knew that I was fortunate to have visited. Theoretically, those of us with healthy children know how blessed our lives are. Sometimes when we are refereeing arguments over whose slice of cake is bigger, it is hard to be as greatful.

Those of us who visit Victory Junction get a glimpse into the lives of those parents and children whose lives have been tremendously affected by illness. Shoes we never want to walk in are well-worn by adults and children whose lives require a kind of bravery and faith most of us are fortunate to never need to muster. Every person who enters the gates leaves a better person for having been a part of the camp, if only for a moment.

There are charity events throughout the year that include the players on the PGA TOUR. Players have been visiting and financially supporting the Target House in Memphis, among others, for years. This is the first year that the Victory Junction Gang Camp has been recognized as the official charity of the Wyndham Championship.

This is another charity that the players on the PGA TOUR will embrace. It is impossible for even the most hardened souls to walk the grounds of Victory Junction Gang Camp and not be affected. Where logic tells us there should be sadness there is joy. It is an unfortunate truth that there can be no hope without despair.

But hope and joy are free at Victory Junction. It is a place where wishes are granted and dreams come true, and the impact is hardly confined to the afflicted.