Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp, Going Beyond The Sport

Published: April 16, 2010

The public tennis courts in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago, Ill. used to be filled with kids playing soccer, basketball, skateboarding-- every sport but tennis. Situated on the southwest side of Chicago, near the University of Illinois at Chicago campus, Pilsen is one of the city’s largest Latino communities. Home to residents of mostly Mexican heritage, the neighborhood is faced with socioeconomic challenges including poverty and gang-related violence. Despite these issues, a strong sense of family and cultural pride is prevalent in the community.

Mark Revermann, co-founder and executive director of the Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp and co-founder Tara Alcazar decided to give back to this community plagued with typical inner-city problems. Revermann’s family lives in Mexico while many members of Alcazar’s family reside in Bolivia. Together they created the program in 2009 to provide local youth with the opportunity to experience a top quality introduction to tennis free of charge. In addition, their mission is to “provide a positive learning experience and a healthy environment while promoting exercise and outdoor activity.”

Last summer the Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp held five sessions each consisting of five weekly lessons. The camp introduced 100 kids to tennis for the first time. This year, the Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp plans to expand and teach 300 kids tennis terminology, stroke fundamentals, scoring, and etiquette. The camp eliminated the traditional barriers to introducing tennis to the area’s youth by providing the camp for free, and at a convenient time for parents.

Local families have been thrilled with the camp. One camper’s parent shared, “Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp gave my child the opportunity to learn and love a sport that she would have never been introduced to in our neighborhood…. Unfortunately, paying for tennis lessons is just not financially possible for us. When given the opportunity to join PJTC for a free introduction to tennis, my family jumped at the opportunity.”

The Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp raised funds through program t-shirt sales and private donations to cover court fees, new racquets, insurance, equipment, and prizes for campers. In terms of staffing, tennis professionals and college tennis players donated their time and provided quality instruction. This year the group has also applied for various grants, and are receiving support through the United States Tennis Association.

In addition to the series of camp sessions, PJTC is also partnering with local schools to incorporate tennis instruction into their physical education curriculums. In January, PJTC began work with the Chicago International Charter Schools, a network of 13 campuses and 7,500 students in underserved urban communities. Partnering with the schools allows the CTA to introduce more kids to tennis, helps with program recruitment, and also provides indoor facilities for cold weather months. In addition, the Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp is currently offering tutoring help to select campers that are experiencing difficulties in the classroom.

Revermann summed up the philosophy of the Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp, “We started with a really simple idea: Bring a new learning experience to Pilsen by which we could meet some great kids, families, and community-minded folks also looking to make a positive change. For me personally, the camp brought me closer to the neighborhood – it goes beyond the sport itself.”

ABOUT THE PILSEN JUNIOR TENNIS CAMP
The Pilsen Junior Tennis Camp’s (PJTC) mission is to provide economically disadvantaged children in the Pilsen, La Villita, and Southwest Chicago neighborhoods with the opportunity to achieve personal fulfillment as players, students, and citizens with the FREE introduction and instruction of tennis. In the broader sense, our objective is to provide a positive learning experience and a healthy environment while promoting exercise and outdoor