Kids’ Days Return with Three Free LI Tennis Events

August 17, 2021 | By Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
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Long Island Tennis Magazine (LITM) was thrilled to partner with the USTA Eastern Long Island Region to host three different Kids’ Days events once again this summer.

Held at three separate locations, LuHi Summer Programs, North Hills Country Club and The Hamlet Golf & Country Club, the Kids’ Days brought together diverse camps, groups and programs, including those who are underprivileged or have special needs, for a free day of tennis and fun. Two of the three locations hosted Kids’ Day for the first time, a great sign of the expansion and growth of the events as we aim to introduce tennis to more and more kids on Long Island.

Click Here to see more photos from the 2021 Kids’ Days

“Our Council being able to sponsor three Kids’ Days this year, after a year off because of the pandemic, was special,” said USTA Eastern Long Island Region Director Jonathan Klee. “Putting tennis racquets in the hands of children, many of them for the first time and watching their faces light up as they hit tennis balls back and forth is one of the missions of the USTA. Our partners this year Long Island Tennis Magazine, LuHi, North Hills Country Club and The Hamlet made it such a positive experience.”

 

The collaboration between LITM and USTA Long Island over the last several years has resulted in the Kids’ Day events continuing to expand and grow each year. Throughout each facility’s courts, smaller Net Generation courts were set up where LITM interns, made up of local high school and college tennis players, USTA Long Island volunteers and local teaching professionals and directors instructed the kids through different drills.

The players move from station-to-station, but the tennis isn’t the only fun to be had at Kids’ Day. There was a dunk tank, bouncy house, relay races, Ninja warrior course, face-painting, a DJ, dance contests and more. The event at LuHi Summer Programs even included a BMX Bike Show, where the kids who attended watched different stunts and tricks by professional bike riders, making for an exciting and unique way to conclude the day.

 

“It was great to see all the kids at our annual Kids Day Events this summer,” said Hilary Bressler, who is on the USTA Long Island’s Kids’ Day Committee and helped teach on court during the events. “They got a chance to play tennis, hit for prizes, have fun at the dunk tank and get their faces painted. What a fabulous way to give back to our communities and support kids getting an opportunity to participate in the wonderful sport of tennis.”

By teaching the basics in a fun environment such as these Kids’ Days, the goal is to influence these youngsters to continue playing tennis in the future, and expose them to them the sport of a lifetime. Some of the deserving groups that attended the events were Circular de la Hispanidad, Suffolk JCC, Glen Cove Boys & Girls Club, Family Residences and Essential Enterprises (F.R.E.E.) and The Village Childcare Center.

“Tennis is a game of a lifetime, and we hope that these experiences spark further play or an interest in tennis as they grow older,” added Klee.

Click Here to see more photos from the 2021 Kids’ Days


Long Island Tennis Magazine Staff
Century
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