Like seemingly everyone else, Rich Davies and Johan Immelman remember where they were when they learned of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States.

Beyond that, they remember how it felt the day after when the wounded nation came together.

While there were universal cries to forever remember what happened on 9-11, Davies and Immelman - both natives of South Africa who now call Charlotte home - want to recapture the collective spirit that followed the terrorist attacks.

That is the genesis behind their Golf 9-12 ( www.golf912.org) initiative that was announced Tuesday in Orlando, Fla. Using golf as a vehicle, Davis and Immelman want to use what will be an annual event as a way to celebrate the American spirit while raising money for education and opportunity on a worldwide level.

"What has bothered us is the divisiveness that has taken place," said Davies, chairman of the project. "The idea of remembering how we felt after 9-11 is important to us.

"For those of us who have chosen to live in this country for all that it stands for, Golf 9-12 is our effort to do something to make sure the country stays as it always has been."

The themes of Golf 9-12 are simple: Remember, unite and engage.

Golf, they decided, is the way to bring people together. They cite Nelson Mandela's words in explaining their concept. Mandela said:

"Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does."

Golf 9-12 is no small undertaking. It has the blessing and support of every major golf organization in the world. It has built a collection of high-profile personalities, including 2008 Masters champion Trevor Immelman, Davis Love III, Dan Marino, Lucas Glover, Lou Holtz and others to spread the word.

The idea is use Sept. 12 as a day when golf can unite people across the country and the world. They estimate at least 200 individual events with 20,000 golfers around the country this year expanding to 10,000 events worldwide in the future.

All of the events will be linked together as they happen with live scoring available through a high-tech network that will include a video component, making it possible to see highlights from across the country as the events unfold.

There will be a dinner with featured speakers in the evening with all local events capable of linking in.

A portion of the money raised will go to fund educational programs at the Pentagon memorial, the 9-11 memorial and the Flight 93 memorial. Money will also be directed to local chapters to benefit first responders.

Additionally, donations will be made to the Armed Forces Foundation to benefit returning soldiers and their families. Beyond that, there are plans to bring television to impoverished areas around the world, giving people a place to gather and see what exists elsewhere.

"What I like about Golf 9-12 is it isn't focusing on the bad things that happened on 9-11 but on the good feelings that brought people together afterward, and we have forgotten those," said Patricia Driscoll, president of the Armed Forces Foundation.

"I love this project because it gets everyone to remember the good will that existed and to push that message worldwide."

The idea came to Davies and Immelman nearly two years ago. Their friend, Skipper Beck, died when his private plane crashed on the morning of Sept. 11, 2009, at approximately 8:45 a.m. as he was flying to New York.

Davies and Immelman felt compelled to do something to honor their friend and the connection to 9-11 led them to expand the idea from a memorial tournament for Beck into something larger.

"We originally thought about doing a golf tournament to raise money to put a child through school in South Africa, something Skipper had pledged to do," Immelman said.

"But the nagging message in our hearts was 'You guys aren't getting it. You are forgetting about 9-11.' That's the issue."