Hi! I’m Koko and I LOVE tennis.

I am fortunate to live in a community where I have access to great coaches, facilities, and equipment.

During my sophomore year, my doubles partner and I played Inglewood High School in Bay League. I saw that our opponents enjoyed tennis as much as we did, but had really old equipment. I talked to the Inglewood coach and asked if we could donate equipment. He said, “yes!” Coach Luke, his players and I met at Inglewood High where he showed me his team’s equipment: a grocery cart filled with old racquets and flat balls. At that moment, I was determined to help.

I collected racquets, grips, bags, balls and hosted the Inglewood teams to a day of tennis and lunch at The Jack Kramer Club. Several teaching pros donated their time to put on a workout, and my teammates came to participate. Every Inglewood player received a new racquet that fit his/her game. Players rotated through courts of serving, volleying, ground strokes, and games. For many students, it was the first lesson they had ever experienced with a professional tennis coach. At the end of the day, Coach Luke said, “I don’t know what good I have done in my life to have so many people come together to do something so amazing for me and my team.”

The smiles on the Inglewood players’ faces and Coach Luke’s sincerity made me think that there were other schools in need and I wanted to do more.

So, I started Sharing the Love|Team Tennis. I partnered with the Los Angeles Unified School District Interathletics Department to provide tennis equipment to boys and girls high school tennis teams in need. The Sharing the Love|Team Tennis team collects new/used quality racquets from clubs and manufacturers, and raises money to give them a new life. We use every resource available to us to Share our Love of tennis – far and wide!

Before

After

Each Sharing the Love|Team Tennis kit includes:

• 12 new/used high-technology racquets with new strings and grips
• 12 cans of new match balls
• Practice Balls
• Sunscreen
• USTA Coaches Resource Manual

Check out the LAUSD Schools I have visited!

Meet my wonderful Racquet Stringers , The Team, and see who is sharing their love!