CLUB TENNIS DESCHAPELLES AT HOSPITAL ALBERT SCHWEITZER, HAITI

Help kids in haiti

thrive through tennis

In Deschapelles, a small village in rural Haiti, kids who might not even have sneakers are playing tennis! Tennis gives the kids of Deschapelles something fun to look forward to every day. But it's so much more than fun and games. By cultivating discipline, tennis teaches sportsmanship, teamwork, and how to handle competition. It provides both an immediate and a long-term sense of purpose, helps the players develop self-confidence and sparks ambition! It provides an outlet for physical energy needed for cognitive development. Tennis supports success in education. The opportunity to play tennis with Club Tennis Deschapelles (CTD) can change the course of kids' lives, and in turn, lift up their families.

History

They've been playing on an ancient concrete court built by the U.S. owned Standard Fruit Company before it left Haiti in the 1950s. Now, the tennis court is on the grounds of Hospital Albert Schweitzer (HAS), founded in 1956 by Larry and Gwen Mellon to serve those in need of healthcare.

At first, only foreign hospital staff played on the court. But then, street kids began to pick up the game with sticks as rackets and dead balls they found scattered nearby. Noticing the interest of these young players, Hospital staff started collecting old racquets and giving impromptu lessons. The Deschapelles community realized that tennis could be a transformative opportunity for the local kids who had little else.

After the 2010 earthquake, five residents of Essex, CT, including the Mellons’ daughter, Jenifer Grant, formed Sister Cities Essex Haiti (SCEH), a group that partners with Deschapelle's Organization for Economic and Social Development. The local community leaders were eager to build a library and enhance the town's fledgling music and tennis programs—all of which SCEH accomplished.

For the nascent tennis program, SCEH sent a US pro and some equipment to train Haitian coaches. Private donors have paid the small stipend for 2 coaches. On a shoestring budget, Club Tennis Deschapelles was born!

Club Tennis Deschapelles

Developing Skills, Thrills, and Sportsmanship

Club Tennis Deschapelles (CTD) serves about 50 kids daily. The kids share the single court that, until now, didn’t even have a fence. Of course, they chased down every ball!

Watch forehand drills here!

CTD runs a 1-2 month-long summer camp for all interested, which serves up to 100 children.

Many players walk long distances on dirt paths from homes that lack running water, electricity, and adequate food and clothing.

Yet, they never miss a day of practice!

The Coaches are 100% Dedicated

Walter, the Head Coach (right) earns $75/month. Jude, the Fitness and Assistant Coach (left) earns $50/month. These stipends are paid for by private donors.

Coach Walter with junior coaches, Youdancie and Fabrice

Reflections

Club Tennis Deschapelles at the library

The Travel Team-

AN Opportunity of a Lifetime

For the 8 years prior to the COVID pandemic, CTD has been fielding travel teams to competitions sponsored by The Haitian Tennis Federation. Up to 25 kids traveled to about 10 tournaments per year in the Port-au-Prince area. Some have even competed in the Dominican Republic!

This team is the only opportunity for many of these kids to travel beyond their community. CTD supplies all their food and transportation.

CTD also hosts tournaments, providing food and medals to the competitors. Until the recent court renovations, the CTD players had a distinct home court advantage—they knew where to aim for the cracks on their opponents’ side of the court!

Winning Championships, Moving Forward

With hand-me-down racquets and shoes, coaches working for little or nothing, older players helping to coach the younger kids, and lots of grit and determination, CTD players are winning tournaments. They brought home 7 trophies from a qualifying tournament in early 2020!

The players of CTD did even better at the 2020 National Championship, where Elivert Philotherene (below, second from left) won the Boys 18 title (see video) and Auguste Christanelle (below, left) was runner-up in the Girls 12 division!

Elivert Philotherene, the 2020 Boys 18 National Champion
(on the right in video below)

Tennis helps these kids overcome tremendous odds. One CTD player, James Adler Germinal, had achieved a top national ranking in his age group when his mother left Haiti to seek work in the US. It wasn’t clear he would be able to continue playing tennis, but a coach in Port-au-Prince, knowing Germinal’s potential and work ethic, invited him to train in Haiti’s capital. Eventually, the coach took him to competitions in Florida, where he now lives and plays on the circuit. Tennis has changed the course of Adler’s life.

James Adler Germinal, who got his start in Deschapelles, represented Haiti in the 2022 Davis Cup

Germinal is second from right

See his interview, in Creole, below

Purpose

Investment

Hope

We know what sport means for us and how valuable it is for our kids. We learn to work hard for ourselves and our team. We set goals and reach them through persistence and resilience. We handle setbacks and celebrate successes. We have a purpose.

For the kids in Deschapelles, the CTD tennis program, which is open to all, is their only opportunity for organized sport. Because most of these kids lack basic necessities, have little education, and sometimes go hungry, CTD serves not only as an opportunity for sport, but an opportunity for social mobility.

Your contribution would go a long way in Haiti. For relatively little, you could fund nutrition supplements, ensure transportation to tournaments, or help to pay a coach. A year’s salary equals the cost of just 6-9 private lessons in the United States. More importantly, your contribution would make a tremendous difference in these kids’ lives.

Tennis is a lifeline - please help extend it!

The Coaches and Players Have:

Enthusiasm ✅
Drive ✅
Dedication ✅
Talent and potential ✅
A successful track record ✅
Community appreciation ✅
Community contribution ✅
Dreams ✅

CTD Needs:

Current Salaries

Head Coach: $75/month
Assistant Coach: $50/mo.
Junior Coach: $30/mo X2
Holiday bonuses

Advanced Training Program:
$250/month

Nutrition

Travel day for the team: $50
Home tournaments: $250
Practice sessions: $1/player*

*Nutritious shake consisting of whole milk, fruit, potatoes, bread fruit, salt and sugar

Transportation to Tournaments

Single day : $350
Multi-day: $450

Passports for Tournaments (DR)
$500/year

Shipping Costs for: clothing, sneakers, racquets, balls.

Accomplishments

Despite setbacks due the pandemic, political disruptions, an earthquake, and rising prices of materials and transportation, CTD continues to make strides.

In 2022, CTD implemented the Advanced Training Program for 15 talented and dedicated players thanks to Lavie Sak who promoted the concept and has provided generous support for it, in addition to sending the gear (pictured below) from his company, ADV Tennis. Lavie has been a long-time supporter of the Cambodian Davis Cup Tennis Team as well.

A big supply of brand new ADV strings (and a shipment of second-hand racquets and clothes from other donors).

A huge supply of ADV gear - grips and dampeners.

Players have a nutritious snack during their first Advanced Training session

Thanks to Martin Grieco, an Argentinian tennis coach and coaches' coach, based in Hong Kong and founder of Coaching the World:

The players have uniforms so they can arrive at tournaments with esprit d'equipe -team spirit!
Coach Martin will help develop the curriculum for the Advanced Training program, help brainstorm how to train 50-100 players of different ages and skill levels with one court, and will provide tips for individual players with specific training needs. He advised on how to continue fitness and tennis skills training while the court was undergoing restoration, such as playing badminton.

The tennis court was resurfaced, a fence was installed, the net posts and net were replaced! We have plans to install solar powered lights so that practice can continue into the evening. This is all only possible because Hospital Albert Schweitzer offers use of this facility to the Deschapelles community, and its Facilities Management Department assisted in completing this project. Many generous individual supporters chipped in including participants in a fundraising tennis mixer at the The Cliff Drysdale Tennis Center, Ritz Carlton, Key Biscayne, FL. This joyful event was hosted by Tennis Director, Max Mangones who once played for the Haitian Davis Cup Team. Also contributing, was a competitive and fun-loving group of tennis players who came together for a festive fundraising tennis competition in Weston, Massachusetts. Jenifer Grant, a primary founder of SCEH and daughter of the Mellons who founded Hospital Albert Schweitzer, attended and helped to check in all the participants. Three of her grandchildren came from out-of-state to compete in the event. Terry Parkinson, also a founder and executive board member of SCEH, played on the winning team. Many thanks also to The HaitianTennis Federation which contributed generously to the materials and planning. We are grateful to the local construction workers who worked tirelessly to restore this magnificent court. Please see photos from the fundraising events on the "MORE" page.

The Inauguration Celebration

The first girls' intra-club tournament on the renovated court

Message From the Coaches

"From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank everyone who helped to make this a reality. We now have a tennis court that is unmatched in the Artibonite Valley and a court that has put Deschapelles Tennis on the map."

CLICK FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT:

Hospital Albert Schweitzer

Sister Cities Essex Haiti

How To Donate

Thank You for Your Love of
Children and Tennis!