Volunteer Spotlight: Linda Glassel Gives Back to Bay Area Tennis Community

Linda Glassel has a long history with tennis that began as a 10-year-old and has led to careers with Wilson and Prince, and now, a volunteer with the Tennis Coalition of San Francisco. 

“I was connected to the Tennis Coalition through a colleague that was on the Advisory Board of a nonprofit I was running in San Francisco,” she said. “He connected me to a board member that he knew, and I was hooked on getting involved.” 

The Tennis Coalition SF was instrumental in campaigning to renovate the Golden Gate Park Tennis Center and securing the $27 million it took to turn it into the modern complex that the Lisa and Douglas Goldman Tennis Center is today. 

“It has been amazing to see the facility come to fruition,” Glassel said. “And now, there is not an hour during the day that the courts are not filled. Hundreds of kids and adults can now play in a state-of-the-art facility and enjoy a growing community of players at the Park.”
 

From the start, she had a personal connection to the project too. 

“I played many tournaments at the Park growing up, and my Dad played all of his high school tennis matches there so it meant a lot to be involved in the renovation project at Golden Gate Park,” Glassel shared. 

The Tennis Coalition SF serves as an advocate for public tennis in San Francisco and partners with groups like the USTA and the San Francisco Parks and Rec department to help grow the sport. And for Glassel, it combines her love of tennis and family history of volunteering. She’s also a member of the Board of Governors of the International Tennis Hall, of Fame as well as organizations that address homelessness and poverty. 

“My parents did a lot of volunteering over the years, and there is so much important work to be done throughout the Bay Area and the country,” she said. “I love tennis, so it’s fantastic to be a part of the Tennis Coalition SF.”

In addition, the Coalition is working with USTA NorCal to host events in July and September to bring even more players to the new Golden Gate Park facilities.

"Having grown up in NorCal and played tournaments throughout the Bay Area, it is now a pleasure to be working with the team at USTA NorCal," Glassel said. "We are partnering together on several tournaments throughout the summer and fall. The team there, led by Alison Vidal, is great to work with and I know will help us to execute some flawless events!"