In March 2018 JTCC began a partnership with Special Olympics Maryland as part of the organization’s vision to make JTCC a place where everybody can enjoy the game of tennis.
Special Olympics Maryland training sessions have been running weekly on Sundays for the last three months with Abby Landis leading the instruction. Landis has worked at JTCC since 2014 and attained her Special Olympics coaching certification in Fall 2017. JTCC Champs Trinity and Origen Grear and Mackenzie Clark have been volunteering their time to assist with running the sessions as program ambassadors.
Four players (Brian, Michael, Bijean and Edie) have been coming to JTCC each Sunday as they are training to compete at the USA Games in Seattle during July. On other weekends JTCC has hosted sessions open to all Special Olympics Maryland athletes that have seen 10 – 15 players in attendance. In the long-term, JTCC is aiming to become a home for Special Olympics athletes where they can train multiple times a week alongside JTCC’s high performance players.
JTCC will also be introducing Wheelchair and Wounded Warriors tennis to its programming in September 2018 as it strives to be an all-inclusive facility where everybody can come together united by a common passion for the sport.
“We are fully committed to JTCC becoming a place that promotes total social inclusion and tolerance” explained JTCC Senior Director of Tennis Vesa Ponkka. “Our goal is for the facility to be somewhere that inspires every person who walks through the door and our Special Olympics program is a key part of this mission.”
Special Olympics Maryland Athletes with Coach Abby Landis, Mackenzie Clark, Trinity Grear and Origen Grear
