H.I.T.S. Youth Program Spotlight: The Wave Program

The Wave Program was first created in 2016 to fulfill a need in the small Pacific Grove community – encourage the development and support of recreational programs for the youth of Pacific Grove.

The program opened in the summer of 2017 and is a free two-week summer day camp for girls and boys, ages 10, 11, and 12 to experience athletics, the arts, and education in health, nutrition, and fitness in harmony with activities and classes with Pacific Grove High School (PGHS).

Tennis is one of the sports offered at the Wave Program, and Co-Founder and Executive Director Darryl Smith is aiming to grow tennis across the entire community and make Pacific Grove the next tennis hub in youth tennis.

“Our goal is to introduce kids to a new activity or sport, like tennis,” Darryl said. “Tennis is a sport that you can play for a lifetime. It’s a great workout. Everyone can play whether it’s competitively or for fun.”

Currently, every child in the Wave Program plays tennis for an hour a day. The program is using USTA NorCal’s H.I.T.S. program to introduce the kids to tennis. The Wave Program works with the local Pacific Grove High School to encourage the children to participate in sports, and the camp is run on the high school campus, so the kids get to meet the local high school coaches and current high school players who volunteer.

By hosting the program on the local high school campus, “We are helping the kids feel comfortable to get involved when they attend high school because they have already met the leaders,” Darryl added. “We are creating community pride in high school athletics.”

And, they have already seen a great impact with 50 or 60 kids signing up for tennis at the local Pacific Grove Junior High after participating in the Wave Program.

USTA NorCal has been working with the Wave Program from almost the beginning and got involved through Peter Burwash, a big supporter of youth tennis and USTA advocate. USTA NorCal has helped with equipment and getting kids racquets, balls, and other swag to get them playing.

However, Darryl, who is a retired basketball coach, knows how important sports and other recreational activities are to the development of youth, so he is looking to expand Pacific Grove’s youth tennis reach beyond the summer program.

As a board member of the City of Pacific Grove Recreation Department, Darryl is working with his fellow members to increase recreation programs across the community, including youth tennis.

He also recently became an after school leader, so the plan is to develop a school program in the future and get elementary kids to learn tennis using USTA NorCal’s H.I.T.S. and H.I.T.S. 2 program.

“We want to put racquets in their hands, and help them develop their skills and interest in the sport,” Darryl said.

The ultimate goal is to help kids develop a healthy appreciation for physical activity and artistic expression to benefit the entire Pacific Grove community.