Tennis in the Parks Program Descends Upon Perryville
About four years ago USTA New England implemented Tennis in the Parks, a program that provides beginner tennis lessons in locations that have facilities but lack offerings. Tennis in the Parks has been hugely successful since its inception in New England, as the program started with about 12 parks and has rocketed to 90 participating parks within that section.
As a result, the Tennis in the Parks concept spread to four other USTA sections and is now making its way to USTA Missouri Valley. John Terpkosh — Tennis Service Representative for USTA Iowa and Parks & Recreation Program Manager for USTA Missouri Valley — is overseeing the initiative for the section.
“Tennis in the Parks is designed to bring tennis to areas that have facilities in their towns or cities, but the parks and rec don’t offer any type of programming,” Terpkosh said. “You’ve already got the facility there. You’ve got nice tennis courts. You’ve got a park and rec that can collect registrations and become our local partner. But then the USTA section provides all the tennis services.”
The Tennis in the Parks initiative was presented to Terpkosh in December 2021. He wanted to get the pilot programs set up this year. He identified USTA Missouri and USTA Nebraska — districts that tend to be more rural, have facilities but lack tennis lessons — as good landing spots. Terpkosh recently locked in a partnership with the Perry Park Center in Perryville, Mo., which will offer tennis lessons for all age levels beginning this summer.
“They were very sold on the whole program from the beginning because the section is doing the bulk of the work,” Terpkosh said. “Who would not sign on and say, ‘Yeah, we want to have tennis — a new sport offering we’ve never had in our town.’ Their town is 3,000 to 4,000 people. It’s a very nice community. They’ve got a beautiful rec center. They’ve got a lot of other sports opportunities. They have two courts right outside the community center. It worked out.”
Terpkosh and Alywn Mushonga — who was hired in April as Tennis Service Representative for USTA Missouri and USTA St. Louis — recently visited Perryville and met with Tessa Bollinger, recreation supervisor for Perryville’s parks & rec department. Terpkosh and Mushonga liked the Perry Park Center setup while Bollinger loved the concept, and Terpkosh said “it’s all falling into place with Perryville.”
Bollinger is helping facilitate the hiring of a tennis instructor to teach the lessons. The Tennis in the Parks program for Perryville is set to run this summer. Dates and times are still being confirmed.
Cost for those 14 and under is $60 while 15 and older is $70. Participants receive six lessons as well as a free, new tennis racquet. Terpkosh said if everything goes well, the Perry Park Center can always run another session this year. To learn more or to sign up for the Perryville program, contact Bollinger at tessabollinger@cityofperryville.com or 573-547-7275.
“We’re looking for true beginners to just expose them to tennis,” Terpkosh said. “They might have had some exposure in school systems, but that’s very limited. Parks usually have the means to go ahead and develop it further with a little bit more concentration on skill development.”
Terpkosh has modeled the USTA Missouri Valley Tennis in the Parks program almost identically to how New England operates. The exception, though, is New England doesn’t place a time limit on its partnerships with parks.
Terpkosh felt a time restriction was important so the Missouri Valley could turn over responsibility to the park systems and continue seeking other opportunities. USTA Missouri Valley committed to a three-year partnership with Perryville parks & recreation. As Mushonga gets more comfortable in his new TSR role, he will take over ownership of the Perryville partnership.
A task force helped Terpkosh identify Perryville as a strong match, and the team is searching for a second great location in USTA Missouri. Terpkosh said this search takes a good amount of time to find the right candidate, and he gets input from USTA Missouri staff to aid in the process.
While the Tennis in the Parks program benefits individual districts, those districts aren’t financially bound by it with all costs being incurred by the Missouri Valley. To learn more about the section’s Tennis in the Parks programming, click here.
Related Articles
-
![Visit the National Tennis Month page]( "A kid holding two tennis balls in front of his eyes next to the USTA Missouri Valley logo and the May is National Tennis Month logo.")
National Tennis MonthJune 03, 2024May was National Tennis Month, and here are some of the exciting events that happened within USTA Missouri as part of the celebration. Read More -
![Visit the Ashland Junior Programs page]( "A young boy hits a forehand with an orange ball.")
Ashland Junior ProgramsAugust 10, 2023Within two months of Mitch Baumchen starting as sports director of the Southern Boone Area YMCA in April 2022, a couple members approached him about creating tennis programming. Read More -
![Visit the League District Champs page]( "Ann Vogel's 65 & Over League team.")
League District ChampsAugust 09, 2023Several USTA Missouri teams have earned advancement to the USTA Missouri Valley League Section Championships, and one squad has already punched their ticket to the 2023 USTA National Championships. Read More
Sign up for our Newsletter
Download the USTA App
