Alpharetta Rotarians Sponsor Tennis Event for Special People

The Rotary Club of Alpharetta sponsored a round robin tennis event to benefit some special people on Saturday, March 9. The event raised $500 for the Special Pops Tennis organization, whose members took part on the courts.

The event was held at Country Club of the South and followed an Up-the-river-Down-the-river No-ad scoring format. Each participating Rotary member was paired with a Pops Athlete.

“I have been a Rotarian for 13 years, and this was one of the best and most rewarding events I have ever done.  Special Pops Athletes are truly Special People,” said Alpharetta Rotarian Heather Demis.

Special Populations Tennis Program, Inc. (Special Pops) is a 501(c)(3) organization which offers an adaptive tennis program specifically designed to share the sport of tennis with children and adults with intellectual disabilities. Programs are offered free of charge to all skill levels, including those who have never played, and include year-round tennis instruction, league play and tournament competition. Based in the metro-Atlanta area, Special Pops is a registered Community Tennis Association (CTA) of the United States Tennis Association (USTA) and is recognized by USTA Georgia as the primary CTA in Georgia for teaching tennis and training coaches to teach tennis to players with special needs. It is also an accredited agency of Special Olympics Georgia (SOGA) and the only tennis training arm for many local SOGA-accredited agencies.

“Alpharetta Rotary is proud to support a program which teaches and shares the lifetime sport of tennis while providing these special athletes the opportunity to build their self-confidence as well as life skills through social interaction,” said Bill Weeks, president of Rotary Club of Alpharetta.