Tennis provides social, educational return for city youth

By Jeffrey Grover

Tenacity, a nonprofit organization, stresses the importance of a good education with a tennis racquet in one hand and a book in the other.

"We have two different programs within the organization," said Jacob Korman, the volunteer coordinator at Tenacity. "We have successfully structured tennis and academics together." Last year, Tenacity gave nearly 5,000 Boston youths the opportunity to gain an education, build confidence, and to make lasting friendships.

There are several local schools partnering with Tenacity to give better opportunities to kids. These schools include: Jackson Mann School in Allston, Mario Umana Middle School Academy in East Boston, John W. McCormack School in Dorchester, Lilla G. Frederick School in Dorchester and Boston Latin School in Boston.

The organization has five full-time tennis coordinators on-site and private instructors are also hired throughout the year. " Tennis has a powerful impact on kids," said Korman. "Tennis teaches resilience, sportsmanship and work ethic that you can't find let say on a basketball court. There is a lot more strategy in playing tennis and much more to think about than dribbling a ball."

Tenacity has several fundraisers throughout the year, including one big gala in September but things aren't too rosy right now on the tennis court with the recession. "Our donations are down and we have reduced our operating budget," said Ned Eames, founder of Tenacity. "We're hoping for some stimulus money to help out because we are constantly trying to raise money. Our operation budget is down by 20 percent".

Jacob Korman sees things a little differently as the volunteer coordinator. "We are holding up extremely well on the volunteerism side of things," said Korman. "We are seeing more people who want to donate their time. We have actually given out more hours to our volunteers who have asked for them." However, Tenacity is always looking for volunteers.

Knowing how to play tennis is certainly important but volunteers don't have to proficient with the sport. "We look for people over the age of 18 who are good with kids," said Korman. "We like to bring in as many people as we can, as long as it would be a good fit."

Tenacity offers a trial run with new volunteers. "We reach out to new volunteer recruits and we actually take them to the sites," said Korman. "We feel people shouldn't commit to anything before they actually fully understand to what they are committing to."

As an organization, Tenacity teaches more than just the fundamentals of tennis. "They've also helped me fill out college applications, job applications, write resumes, and more that I can't remember, said Nick Nazzaro, an alum of the program. "I'm applying for college this fall and they've been helping me with that process as well."

As much as Nazzaro has enjoyed Tenacity, there are some who don't feel the same way. "It can be a struggle to get kids focused in the program, especially in the warmer months," said Nazzaro. Youngsters want to hang out with their friends, go to the mall, and play other sports. It can be a tough concept to most kids that they've committed to Tenacity and are expected to go regularly.

For the kids who do show up, Tenacity gives them hope for the future. "I love tennis but this organization is more than about playing tennis," said Eams. "It's about the passion for community development, education, social justice and providing an everyday opportunity for those kids who don't necessarily have it."