12 April 2022 | Tennis Queensland

It started with days upon days of relentless rain that had no intention of stopping. From Maryborough to Northern New South Wales and everywhere in-between, the one in one-hundred-year weather event quickly replicated scenes seen a mere eleven years ago during the 2011 floods.

For Pure Tennis Ferny Hills, the straw that broke the camel’s back was a deluge that saw the creek behind the club break its banks and disperse a meter of water across the entire venue. Within the space of 30 minutes, the facility was inundated.

Pure Tennis Ferny Hills Pro Shop Manager Leanne Lauder says, “It was just devastating. Everyone here pours their heart and soul into this club.”

“We all had a little cry together once the water receded and revealed the true damage.”

Like so many Queensland and Northern New South Wales communities impacted by the floods, the centre was overwhelmed by the amount of help and support they received as they began the mammoth cleanup.

“We put the call out for help on Monday after the flood waters subsided and we were absolutely blown away by the support we received from the local community. There were utes and people everywhere within the hour!”

“We had so many members of the club and community show up and get their hands dirty. We even had our neighbors from CrossFit, the Arana Hills Fire Brigade and Volleyball Ferny Hills lend us a hand.”

“By the end of the day, our amazing cleanup crew managed to get most of the courts cleaned and close to operational.”

 

This galvanizing of not only the tennis community but the local Ferny Hills community is a true testament to the team at Pure Tennis Ferny Hills and how well respected they are both on and off the court.

Support stretched far and wide. ‘Smalls’ the artist who recently painted a mural of 2022 Australian Open champion Ash Barty at the Centre, drove up from the Gold Coast to help with the cleanup and to touch up the mural, which also fell victim to the floods.

 

 

 

For the club, it was important to become operational again to provide a safe space and a sense of normality for their members. And as they say, many hands (in mud) make light work. Within days, tennis was back! Albeit on condensed courts and makeshift venue solutions, everyone was incredibly grateful to be back on the court.

Like many sporting clubs, Pure Tennis Ferny Hills are still facing a long road to recovery with some club facilities and courts set to be out of action for months. The club is looking forward to holding a community BBQ later this month to thank everyone for their efforts during the floods and to celebrate the wonderful community spirit displayed by Ferny Hills locals.

Rallying of community and volunteers was not unique to Pure Tennis Ferny Hills with numerous impacted tennis facilities reporting overwhelming community support from locals.

“We have heard remarkable stories about the community rallying around our impacted clubs to support each other through the toughest of times. We had coaches offering up courts to neighboring facilities that had been impacted and many offers of assistance,” said Tennis Queensland General Manager, Elia Hill.

“Despite these testing times, our tennis community has remained strong, and Tennis Queensland is here for the road to recovery. Our team have and will continue to work with impacted clubs to support grant applications, provide equipment and support facilities in getting back on court.”

This is but one of many amazing stories of community spirit, if you or your tennis club have an ace story you wish to share we’d love to hear it. Please get in touch via email – [email protected]