RTA, Fraziers introduce program to city elementary schools

A Tennis Topics article by JOHN PACKETT, RTA Staff Writer

It’s been a while since the likes of Junie Chatman, Rodney Harmon, Rozzell Lightfoot and Koren Fleming came out of the city schools to make their mark on the local tennis scene.

If a program initiated by the Richmond Tennis Association and given a boost by Elizabeth and Michael Frazier’s generosity works out, there may be many more developing from Richmond’s inner city in the future.

The seed has been planted in the city’s 26 elementary schools through a U.S. Tennis Association program called Quick Start, which uses a smaller court and racquets with a foam ball --- as well as modified scoring --- to get kids hooked on the sport at an early age.

But the most important aspect of the program, according to Cris Robinson, is simply giving kids who wouldn’t otherwise have the chance an opportunity to enjoy the game without paying for the high cost of lessons and equipment.

“Getting a really good player out of the city, to me, is really far down on the priority list,” said Robinson, a former Clemson University standout who is now the director of tennis at Willow Oaks Country Club.

“Getting the introduction to tennis and having some adult hold the tennis racquet with them and smile at them and say hello. Ask them how they’re doing that day. I think that’s the bigger goal of this whole program.”

The RTA paid for USTA membership ($50 per school) for each of the elementary schools, so they can have access to the Quick Start format and curriculum. The Fraziers, who are co-owners of the new Richmond Raiders indoor football team that begins play at the Coliseum in January, donated the equipment for the program.

“We’ve always been community-service oriented,” said Elizabeth Frazier, whose husband, Michael, is chairman and CEO of Genworth Financial Inc., a global financial security company based in Richmond.

The Fraziers founded the Mary and Frances Youth Center, which is located on the campus of Virginia Commonwealth University and offers an after-school program called Lobs and Lessons for inner-city children featuring tennis instructions and life skills.

“I love tennis,” continued Elizabeth Frazier. “My parents met on the tennis court. I didn’t start playing myself until I was an adult. One thing led to another and, all of a sudden, you find yourself delivering equipment to city schools.”

Through the Fraziers, Genworth was also responsible for bringing several exhibitions in recent years to the Siegel Center involving Andre Agassi, Steffi Graf (the two of whom have given clinics as well as played), James Blake, Anna Kournikova, Andy Roddick and Lindsay Davenport.

The Quick Start equipment, which included nets, racquets and balls, was given to the schools last month, and Robinson and his wife, Melissa, held a clinic at the Mary and Frances Center to instruct physical education teachers how to conduct a curriculum.

“We did a whole day of taking them through all the teaching formations and different drills,” said Cris Robinson. “One of the things that was pretty neat was, at the very end, one of the ladies said they had done a lot of in-services in their careers but this was the best one they had ever been a part of.

“And she said the reason for that was what we taught them and using the materials, they could implement with whatever space they had available, whether it was a lot or a little. Very few of them have tennis courts but they do have blacktops they can use.

“Some of them can only use half of a cafeteria or a stage. One guy said they have no hard surface at all, just a grass field. But he said he was going to use half of what we taught them, things that could be done in the air [without a court].

“The majority really received it well. They were excited about it and they loved the fact that the kids could be successful at it.”

The RTA is also hoping to get area clubs involved in the process by sending volunteers to the schools to help with the project.

“The plan is to take each of the schools that have an interest and find volunteers through one of the club’s USTA League teams or maybe a Suburban League team. We’re still working on it, but the idea would be for the team to adopt a school and help with the classes on certain days.”

The VCU Sports Center, which is a graduate school for sport management, is scheduled to be involved in the process and help conduct a Quick Start tournament among the elementary schools sometime in the spring, possibly in April, at the Mary and Frances Center.

“For some of these kids, when a club member comes in and spends 30 minutes or so, showing they care about the kid and gives them attention and helps boost their confidence and self-esteem, I think it’ll be a really positive experience they might not get on a daily basis,” said Robinson.

There is no doubt in Elizabeth Frazier’s mind that a program like this will be successful.

“I think two things,” she said. “With tennis and hopefully, through volunteers and Lobs and Lessons, when you spend time with some of these kids, they just really need some positive feedback. And the fact that they can get on a tennis court and have a little bit of success is great.

“We’re going to stress that positive feedback with the volunteers. You plant seeds and you grow them. I think this is a good start.”