Club wins Tennis Canada award for partnership and development

B7

By Sean Hatchard
Times & Transcript Staff

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John Pearson and his staff at Tennis Moncton are big believers in reaching out to others -- beyond their own walls -- to promote their sport.

Besides regular activities at the club, they also conduct a series of initiatives across Metro Moncton to show their passion for tennis and to get newcomers playing.

And recently, they received some pretty big recognition. Pearson, the club president, and Tennis Moncton were honoured in Toronto with a Tennis Canada Building Tennis Communities excellence award for partnership and development.

The award recognizes the numerous partnerships Tennis Moncton has developed in its community, including School District 2, City of Moncton, New Brunswick department of wellness, culture and sport, Tennis New Brunswick and Tennis Canada.

Among its community ventures, the club visits middle schools and high schools, as well as daycares and playground and parks. It also hosts week-long children's camps in conjunction with Moncton's Camp Centennial, has set up a tennis for tykes program for beginners ages 4-6 and operates two youth-size courts -- exactly half the size of regular tennis courts -- that are used to develop players' skills at an appropriate level.

"We are sort of at the forefront of this and we're really trying to outreach into the community. We're trying to bring tennis a new image and make it more accessible. The fact is tennis gives you an active lifestyle and anyone can do it," said Pearson, who said his staff and volunteer board members should get a lot of credit for the national award.

"We feel that active participation is not only a goal, but a way of life. Tennis is something you can do for the rest of your life."

Tennis Moncton, which resurfaced all 10 of its courts this past summer, partnered with Tennis Canada and Tennis New Brunswick to host the ATP Moncton Men's Challenger professional tournament in 2008. The event featured 32 players from 21 countries, including the winner, former Wimbledon semifinalist Xavier Malisse of Belgium.

"This award is also a thank you to our partners, who have been supportive of us. Like the city, which has provided such wonderful facilities. It's a win-win for everybody. We go to parks where there are no courts or no programs and we bring qualified instructors, portable nets, racquets and low impact balls for the kids."

Tennis Moncton has also put together a locally produced DVD on its club. The five-minute DVD was shown at Tennis Canada's Building Tennis Communities national conference in Toronto earlier this month and is expected to be available soon on the Internet on YouTube.

As a result of winning the excellence award, Pearson has been invited to attend a United States Tennis Association meeting in San Diego, California in January as a representative of Tennis Canada.

Building Tennis Communities is a collaborative effort between Tennis Canada and provincial tennis organizations to grow the game of tennis in communities throughout the country.