Hispanic Heritage Month Highlight: Anelisse Garner

In celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month taking place from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 in the United States, USTA Missouri is featuring tennis player and coach Anelisse Garner.

Soccer, better known around the world as fútbol, may be the most popular sport in South America, but tennis still holds its own. Santa Cruz, Bolivia was the starting point of the tennis journey of Anelisse Garner, a Missouri State University tennis alum, UTR Sports team tennis specialist, Drury University assistant coach and overall tennis fanatic.

Growing up in Bolivia, Garner’s father fostered an importance of physical activity and good sportsmanship amongst his set of triplet children. Garner dipped her toes into gymnastics, soccer, swimming and everything in between. Ultimately, she fell in love with tennis.

“When (my brothers and I) turned 9, we decided to give tennis a real try and from that moment, there was no turning back,” Garner said. “Tennis quickly became the center of our lives. We started with group classes, progressed to private lessons and eventually began competing in junior tournaments.”

Focusing more time to the sport, Garner embraced her family’s Bolivian culture and applied the life lessons of her parents into her performance on the court.

“I always knew that tennis could be my pathway to greater opportunities, so my cultural background taught me to embrace that challenge with dedication,” Garner said. “The mindset of perseverance was key. I carried that mindset into every match, knowing that hard work would eventually pay off. My family’s values and my cultural background helped me stay focused, calm under pressure and motivated to push through any obstacle.”

She continued to play tennis throughout her childhood and later moved to the United States to play at the collegiate level.

“This journey opened doors for all three of us, leading to college tennis in the U.S.,” Garner said. “I was fortunate to play for Missouri State University for four years and during that time, I discovered my passion for coaching and organizing tournaments and leagues.”

After graduation, she began her post-college career in the sports industry as sports coordinator for the City of Springfield, Mo. and general manager for the Springfield Lasers at Cooper Tennis Complex. Recently, she switched positions and now represents UTR Sports as a team tennis specialist and is an assistant coach at Drury University with her husband, Tim Garner.

She carries the same values her family instilled in her in everything she does. Whether it is her work, personal life or on the tennis court, she keeps her family values and traditions close by.