Joyce Dreslin​

First Place

Written by: Amy Cao, Pflugerville High School, Pflugerville, Texas

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​Within the Texas Tennis community I am a part of, I personally admire Joyce Dreslin. Dreslin is a Hall of Fame member that I feel connected to because her dedicated initiative in bringing adaptive tennis to stroke rehab players is a shared interest of mine. Additionally, the way Dreslin delivers and promotes the programs she is involved in is how I wish to emulate her in my tennis career and future career plans. The impact she has made from so many tennis players truly reveals how she embodies an inclusive and selfless pillar.

 

At the local assisted living center I worked for this past year, I was fortunate to serve one of the kindest souls, "Mr. Barry." Mr. Barry was an avid recreational and competitive tennis player like myself. Each meal time I encountered Mr. Barry, I loved to converse with him about his tennis career. However, Mr. Barry was one of the many residents I worked with who faced multiple strokes. As a result, Mr. Barry was limited in his ability to play tennis let alone live independently. Mr. Barry would often say, "I wish I could return to the tennis courts, my home." Although his mind struggled to come up with words, his desire to express his love for tennis struck me.

 

Coming from my experience with Mr. Barry and caring for patients who recently dealt with a stroke during my recent hospital rotations, Dreslin's story opened my eyes to the possibility of playing tennis as a way to heal. Dreslin inspires me to expand the tennis activities I am currently involved in towards previous stroke players.

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Maureen Connolly Brinker​

Second Place

Written by: Juliana Creel, Lake Travis High School, Lakeway, Texas

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​I lined up with all of the other ten-year-old girls at the opening ceremony of the Little Mo tournament when something caught my eye: a pamphlet, titled “Little Mo’s Legacy.” At the time, I was in a reading phase, so I immediately approached the clerk at the desk and asked if he had any other copies of the pamphlet. He politely smiled at me and handed me one to keep. I ran back to where my parents were standing at the front of the tennis facility, excited to read the pamphlet to my mom in the car. Little did my childhood self know that the pamphlet was only just the beginning of my appreciation for all that Maureen Connolly Brinker has done for the game.

 

Tennis has been in my life since I could walk. My parents have always been avid tennis players, and coaches and have been involved in the tennis community in varying capacities. I grew up seeing all sides of the sport. I began playing tournaments at age seven and soon became one of the top junior players in Texas. At the age of nine, I had the opportunity to participate in the Little Mo Sectionals tournament in Boerne, Texas, and eventually qualified for the national Little Mo tournament that same year.

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​Charlie McCleary

​Third Place

Written by: Zachary Henry, Vanguard College, Preparatory School, Waco, Texas

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The first courts I ever played on were the Charlie McCleary courts at Waco Regional Tennis Center (WRTC). While five-year-old me didn’t think much of the name, I gradually became quite familiar with it, hearing stories about him from my coaches and playing in the local Charlie McCleary Open.

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Mr. McCleary, like myself, lived and taught tennis in Waco. I began teaching tennis nearly four years ago in the summer of 2020, after COVID-19 restrictions began lifting. While I work and play with kids of all ages and skill levels, from absolute beginners, to recreational players, to top level blue chip recruits, I specialize in developing players aged 7-9 years old. My work as a tennis coach consists of both paid and volunteer positions, through organizations including WRTC, the Waco Tennis Association, Special Olympics, and my local high school and community college. Teaching tennis in Waco, I naturally look to Charlie McCleary for inspiration, and even more so when I teach on the very courts named after him.

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