Transforming inner-city youths in Montego Bay with tennis
Loading article...
Delroy Allen has a big dream
He is a Jamaican based in Boston, USA, and he wears many caps. He's a tennis professional, coach, hotelier, philanthropist and community leader. He grew up in the hills of Mount Zion near Montego Bay, St. James and the one thing he remembers most about his past is that tennis was his escape route from poverty and hopelessness.
As a youngster, he was a ball boy at the Half Moon Resort in Montego Bay under the guidance of the late tennis luminary, Richard Russell. After sometime around the tennis courts, Delroy Allen discovered that he had talent for tennis. The game brought many productive opportunities and great elevation to his life, and now he wants to transform the lives of children in the Montego Bay region through tennis.
Allen is the owner of Takuma Boutique Hotel, a beautifully appointed property in Mount Zion, near Rose Hall. For the past two years, he has been hosting free tennis clinics there for children between the ages of four to 12 years old. The programme is called the Takuma Tennis Academy.
During the school year, it operates for two to three days a week after school for two hours, and on Saturdays it runs for six hours with three two-hour rotations. During school holidays, including this upcoming summer, daily sessions will be offered, each three hours long, combining court time, education, and mentorship, for a total of four hours per session. This year's summer session will run for six weeks.
If this is sweet music to the ears of parents and children who seek meaningful engagement during after school hours and during the holidays, the news gets even better. Free transportation is provided for the children to get to Takuma. They also get complimentary lunch and drinks, and those who are interested in swimming, computer coding and robotics can get coaching in those area, as well, free of cost. So what was it that motivated Delroy Allen, a tennis coach to New Englanders for over 35 years, to start this transformative programme that is already positively impacting on the lives of young Jamaicans?
"I see so many talented young people in Jamaica who simply lack opportunity, guidance, and access," Allen told The Gleaner. "I experienced firsthand how the sport taught me discipline, structure, confidence, and opens doors to a better future. I realised that many children in socially and economically challenged communities had the same potential, but did not have the resources or support system to develop their skill," he revealed.
"Furthermore," he stated, "I wanted to create something bigger than tennis, a programme that would mentor, educate, inspire, and uplift young people through sport at no cost to them. The goal is to use tennis as a vehicle to help children develop leadership abilities, resilience, integrity, teamwork, and life skills, while exposing them to opportunities they may never have imagined possible."
Last summer the clinic welcomed 65 students from several socially and economically challenged communities throughout Montego Bay, including Flankers, Norwood, Glendevon, Bottom Pen, Salt Spring, Mount Zion, Mount Salem, and Granville. Some of the children are challenged by poverty, violence, lack of resources, and limited access to positive extracurricular activities. For many families, programmes like tennis would normally be out of their reach. The magnet for the children is that tennis introduces them to an activity that is completely different for them. They are excited to learn the sport and they quickly build confidence, a sense of belonging and an early passion for the game. They see that there is someone who truly believes in them, and the programme inspires hope and a sense of purpose.
The year-round programme is led by a team of dedicated coaches, including Delroy Allen, Brenton White, and Delbert Johnson. From time to time, they are joined by professional pros from the US who assist on rotation. The volunteer pros will join the core team starting in June to support and elevate the programme.
The clinic is funded through the Friends of Jamaica Non-Profit Tennis Academy and Enrichment Centre, a registered 501(c)(3) organisation in the United States. All donations are tax-deductible and the fundraising events are held at Longfellow Tennis Club in Wayland, Massachusetts, Frog Hollow Tennis Club and the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston. Allen hopes that this summer there will be more support from Jamaican entities as locals become more aware of the efforts to transform lives in the Montego Bay area.
"We burst with pride when we see the children grow," Allen declared. "Seeing the transformation is incredibly rewarding, and this is what motivates us every day," he added, smiling proudly.
diademata@aol.com