Fun day of tennis for disadvantaged girls

The Sandton Racquets Club hosted a fun day of tennis for girls of the House Group Centre in Hillbrow.

The day was organised by Diego Elez of the club together with Matthew Mensah and Linda Magapatona-Sangaret of Brand SA.

The House Group is a charity organisation which uplifts the lives of disadvantaged, abused and neglected girls in Johannesburg.

Elez said 23 girls of the home came through on the day for tennis coaching.

“I would like to coach these girls and help uplift them by training them and identify their skills and help them become assistant coaches, coaches and players,” said Elez. He added that tennis was a great way to develop sporting talent as it involved an array of skills to perfect the craft.

“This is a trial run and I would like to do it on a continuous basis. I would like them to bring the girls in twice a week for coaching so I can coach them.”

Mensah is a humanitarian and an avid sports lover and has been involved with the home for about five years.

“The centre has girls aged between 12 and 17 years old and there are more than 30 girls in the home at any time,” he said.

Mensah added that the reason he started to work with the home was to find a sustainable and continuous solution to help.

“We do a variety of activities with the girls such as taking them to theme parks, movies or museums,” said Mensah.

“Some of the girls have never been to the movies or ever been to Sandton.”

For these outings, Mensah organises transport, food and the entertainment. “I would like to see more corporates get involved with uplifting them.”

What do you think about this upliftment project? Share your views with us on the Sandton Chronicle Facebook page

Also check out:

https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/199221/hyde-park-high-schools-tennis-star-on-the-rise/

https://www.citizen.co.za/sandton-chronicle/205564/womens-tennis-on-the-up/