The combined efforts of the Community Service and Mentorship & Team Events YLC Committees came together in a well-executed event at Edward Vincent Jr. Park intended to promote tennis and wellness for the tennis community. 

The event took place on April 22nd and featured tennis activities and instruction for community youth in addition to resources including free books, snacks, and USTA-specific merchandise. 

The Mentorship & Team Events Committee planned the basis of the tennis activities for the day, including a warmup and various exercises and drills run by committee members. Once kids arrived, after receiving their free goodies, they proceeded to the courts.

Most of the initial participants were younger kids, and were led in tennis activities by volunteers with a background in high school or competitive tennis including Morgan Shaffer, Mika Ikemori, Nischal Spurling, Chaeyule Kang, and Rishi Vridhachalam. Later, some older participants arrived, and the gameplay shifted to include a second court as well. 

40 Love Foundation graciously offered their Inglewood facility to the YLC for the event. As an NJTL youth organization with programs that work to impact kids’ lives through the sport of tennis, 40 Love has a history of partnering with USTA to expose communities to tennis.

The event’s snacks and books were provided by the Community Service Committee. A member of the committee, Halle Parker, reached out to Albertsons for the snacks, comprising 150 to 200 cuties, grocery bars, and water bottles, all of which were freely given due to the YLC’s position as a community-oriented organization. 

For the books, Parker contacted Friends of the Library at Irvine in Heritage Park, who donated 150 to 200 books for free.

“Book distribution is part of our goal in providing educational resources to kids coming to the event, which is really important,” Parker explained.

Both the snacks and the books were handed out at a blue tent that players stopped at before going on the courts. Kids were able to grab a drawstring bag and choose a bar, cutie, water bottle, book, fidget toy, sunglasses, and more. 

The racquets used by participants in the event’s tennis activities were mostly sourced from a “community kit” provided by the Community Department of USTA SoCal. “The kit is used for school trainings, community play days, even clinics,” said Shania Hernandez, a member of the USTA SoCal department and a YLC adult lead. The kit includes around forty racquets and even more tennis balls, which kids lacking their own supplies could use on the court. 

The organization SPIN Youth Tennis also donated fifteen racquets for the event, which kids were permitted to take home with them if they were so inclined. Run by Parker, the organization collects gently used tennis equipment to donate to underserved communities.

Though the council was prepared for a greater number of participants, it was amazing to see the impact on local children, some who may have picked up a racquet for the first time at the event. The YLC will continue to work to provide similar tennis opportunities and events in our goals of promoting tennis and wellness. 

Make sure to check out the YLC Instagram page to see more of the Marketing Committee’s coverage of the event. Our handle is @ustasocal_ylc.