Our resilient Future Leaders Class of 2021 took their seats at graduation at Royal South Yarra Lawn Tennis Club for a well-deserved celebration after a year of twists and turns.
Throughout snap lockdowns and restrictions, nothing could stop the incredible twenty one participants as they set out to improve themselves and their clubs.
And while a 5.9 magnitude earthquake did its best during an online learning session, not even that could shake their determination.
Accompanied by proud parents, coaches and friends, the ceremony was filled with appreciation for all the hard work these young tennis leaders have contributed to our great sport during such a challenging time.
2021 Future Leader Silas Kingma was thankful for the opportunity to improve his skills working with the kids in his small town of Gunbower.
“The town has a population of 700 people, and the club has about 70 members and it’s growing. A lot of our members are made up of kids which is really good to see the younger generation coming through.”
“I saw the opportunity, one of the board members at the club got emailed. They asked me if I wanted to do it because I’ve been involved with the kids for a number of years now. I looked into it and thought it was very cool – the rest is history!”
Silas’ project involved organizing a Hot Shots day and program for the local kids, and at one point had every child enrolled at the school picking up a racquet and joining him at the club.
Fellow participant Mia Stefanofska also noted how the skills she learnt during her time with the Future Leaders program impacted what she chose to do for her project.
“I found out I’m quite a visual learner… that’s where the idea for the video came from. It benefits us so people can see us from a different perspective. The plan is to put it on our website, so when you open the website you get to see a bit about us!”
Do you know someone who is a future leader? Find out more and stay updated with all the details for the 2022 Future Leaders program here.
Latest
VIC