Play for Protection in Action: Making Tennis a Sport for Everyone

At EcoServe Tennis, Play for Protection has always explored how sports can create opportunities, build confidence, and positively impact young people. Recently, I’ve had the opportunity to put that mission into action by volunteering weekly with Kids In Distress, helping teach tennis to foster and at-risk children.

Each week, I work with students in second through fifth grade, teaching the fundamentals of tennis through fun, engaging drills and games. We focus on introducing skills in a way that makes the sport exciting and approachable, giving the kids a chance to learn, play, and enjoy being on the court.

But there is a bigger purpose behind introducing these children to tennis.

Tennis is often viewed as an exclusive sport—one associated with expensive lessons, private clubs, costly equipment, and families who have the resources to provide those opportunities. That reputation can make the sport seem inaccessible to children who don't grow up with those advantages. We want the kids we work with to see something different: tennis belongs to them, too.

A child's ability to experience a sport should not be determined by their family's income or circumstances. By giving children the opportunity to pick up a racket, step onto a court, and learn the game in an encouraging environment, we hope to break down some of the barriers that have historically made tennis feel out of reach.

That idea closely reflects the mission behind EcoServe Tennis. Access to tennis is about more than providing a racket or teaching a forehand. It is about making sure that children who may never have pictured themselves playing the sport are given the opportunity to discover it for themselves.

Through games and interactive drills, we work to make every session a place where the kids can try something new without being afraid of getting it wrong. They can compete, laugh, encourage each other, and experience the excitement that comes with improving at something they may have never tried before.

For me, volunteering each week has made the purpose behind Play for Protection even more tangible. Tennis has been a major part of my own life, and being able to share that experience with younger children has reinforced why expanding access to the sport matters.

Tennis should not be defined by who can afford private lessons, who belongs to a country club, or who grows up surrounded by the sport. It should be defined by who wants to play.

Through my work with Kids In Distress and through EcoServe Tennis, I hope to continue helping create spaces where more children can pick up a racket and realize that there is a place for them on the court.