Grants at Work:  Kroc Wheelchair Clinic

The Kroc Wheelchair Tennis Program, run out of the Ray and Joan Kroc Tennis Center in Greenville, S.C., is expanding their player’s involvement in the game, thanks to a generous grant from the USTA. 

The Kroc Tennis Center is a national award-winning facility. With over 700 members and 16 courts, the facility offers both group and private lessons to the general public, as well as a free outreach program to spread the sport of wheelchair tennis. 

The outreach program is led by Director of Tennis, Anibal Braga with the assistance of Sarah Casteel.  

Casteel is a wheelchair player herself and has been instrumental in the expansion of the program.  Currently, ten wheelchair players participate on a regular basis. The players have formed a team and regularly practice to compete in tournaments, and have free use of the courts and equipment as part of the program. 

In January of 2017, the USTA donated a grant to the Kroc Wheelchair Tennis Program. The funds have been allocated to tournament travel expenses for the wheelchair team. 

Thanks to the grant, the players participated in four tournaments last year; Rock Hill, S.C., Locust Grove, Ga., Grand Rapids, Mich., and Hilton Head, S.C. 

During the fall, the Kroc Center also held a USTA Regional Coaches Training, a Wheelchair Clinic in conjunction with the Roger C Peace Center to encourage beginner participation, and a Run and Roll Round Robin Tennis Social, that’s inclusive of both bodied and wheelchair players.