Austinite offers free tennis lessons to at-risk youth, postponed by City Council

In a low-income St. Louis neighborhood, Christopher Scurry, a Missouri native, started tennis lessons with his father. Equipped with a racket, Scurry learned tenacity at a young age.

“In tennis, you’re stuck out there by yourself without a team,” Scurry said. “If you’re down or you’re losing, you have to figure it out for yourself. Unlike football or basketball, you can’t call a timeout.”

Extracurricular activities like tennis and other sports are more common in higher-income families, according to a 2015 survey done by Pew Research Center. But research shows that sports help boost self-esteem no matter the income levels of the player. This is why Scurry wants to be the one to teach kids tennis, saying it gave him confidence he otherwise would not have had.

His program, Born to Serve Inc., is a non-profit corporation that will bring free tennis lessons to low-income communities, like some areas in East Austin. Originally, he hoped to start his program by the end of 2017. But due to the long process needed for approval with Austin City Council, he has had to push the date for the start of lessons back further.

“It has gone cold,” Scurry said. “It’s looking like 2018.”

Scurry says he needed reliable tennis courts in order to hold his lessons. He said he went to Rosewood Park first, which was by first-come, first-serve basis.

“My first thought was that I didn’t want these kids to go and then it already be in use,” said Scurry.

Scurry then went to a park outside of his church that was unavailable for reservations. That’s when he decided to go to Austin City Council’s Oct. 5 meeting and appeal to Councilwoman Ora Houston of District One. He was later redirected to the Parks and Recreation Department.

Kimberly McNeeley, the acting director for the Austin Parks and Recreation Department, said community members approach the department with these requests on a regular basis, and the wait times for approval are dependent on many factors.

“The Department works to establish an agreement with recreation program instructors,” McNeeley said in an email. “The length of time to establish the working relationship depends upon the type of service, whether there are fees involved and expectations of the Parks and Recreation Department.”

But nearly a month later, Scurry says there have been more than a few complications. “It feels like I’m going in a circle,” he said.

Student athletes at the University of Texas support Scurry’s push to provide an outlet to lower-income students. UT football player Kris Boyd said it’s a necessity to bring sports to lower-income areas because it’s how some children will see their way out of poverty.

“If I didn’t get into sports, my life would be very different because I wasn’t really in a wealthy family with business jobs,” Boyd said. “I was around drug dealers and a lot of illegal and violent things. So my life would probably be bad, becoming a drug dealer or falling into the lifestyle of barely making ends meet living in poverty.”

And testaments like Boyd’s are what makes Scurry continue to pursue the tennis program despite his frustrations.

“I just want the kids to have an opportunity to play tennis and be active,” Scurry said. “That’s the main motivation.”