Building Young Lives 

In 1998, Slade had more kids (approximately 250) go through a one-day free grassroots tennis program than anywhere else in the United States. Because of that, a marketing group, the Tennis Industry Association, recognized her as a Funded Market Success Story, one of about a dozen programs nationwide that excelled in using United States Tennis Association (USTA) grant money to expose inner-city kids to tennis.

This spring, the Southern Section of the USTA picked her to win a $1,000 scholarship to attend the 2001 USA Teaching Conference in New York City, an outstanding event featuring top names like teaching pro Dennis Van der Meer and sports psychologist Jim Loehr. The event emphasizes boosting multiculturalism in the sport. Nominated by the Charlotte Tennis Association (CTA), Slade attended the teaching conference in late August, which is held in conjunction with the US Open tennis tournament.

When I sat down with her recently at Garinger, she was still enthusiastic about the people she'd met, the kids she'd worked with at Arthur Ashe Day and the experts she'd heard. She'd even gotten to watch Serena Williams win an early-round match and seen Hillary Clinton, whom she calls my hero.

But her enthusiasm has been tempered by the tragedy in New York, which struck two weeks after she left, only a few blocks from the Grand Hyatt where she stayed. I still worry about whether anybody I met was killed or is missing, she says.

That she zeroes in on the well-being of others is typical. Coach Slade definitely goes the extra mile for kids, says Angela Steele, the family services director at the Johnston YMCA, which sends children to Slade's summer program. If there are transportation difficulties, she figures something out. She will even start the program later if needed. When Garinger was being renovated two summers in a row, she found other facilities.

Beyond being flexible about teaching, Slade takes the most important step: She invests energy in the youngsters.

She introduces inner-city kids to a nontraditional sport, but she teaches discipline as well, Steele says. We've noticed that our kids have increased in that area, as well as increasing their skill in the game. Each year she takes the kids to tournaments, and they've started watching the pros on TV.

The Johnston Y sends about 200 kids through Slade's program each summer, which consists of free clinics, instruction and competitive opportunities. It's a USTA Pathway Program designed to introduce kids to the sport. Funding comes from USTA grants, CTA's Jeff Adams Youth Foundation and other sources. The children range in age from pre-schoolers to teenagers and receive tennis racquets to keep at the free clinics.

Not surprisingly, they clamor for the racquets that come with cardboard advertisements of the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena, who recently made history when they played each other for the US Open singles' title. Not only had two African Americans never faced each other in the final, they were sisters, marking the first time sisters had squared off in more than a century.

They want the Venus racquet most of all -- even the boys, says Pattie Smith, who oversees USTA's grassroots tennis program on behalf of CTA. She coordinates local teachers like Slade, who is one of a number who work with inner-city kids. This past summer, William Brown had the most kids (about 400) come through his program, many of whom were from the McCrorey YMCA.

When Smith teaches sessions herself, she asks kids their favorite players and they quickly shout, Venus and Serena. Once when she told them, Let me see some Pete Sampras' sweat, they turned to her and asked, Who?

Not only are the kids impressed that African American sisters have risen to the top of the game, they pick up on the details of their lives. That's the most powerful influence, Slade says.

These kids know if you can come out of Compton (a rough, low-income area south of Los Angeles) and achieve your dreams, they can, she says. You work hard like the Williams sisters, then you can be successful. You don't have to go to a Florida (tennis academy) and have a lot of money. You don't have to play all those junior tournaments, which also costs a lot. The Williams family did things in an unconventional way, and they made it.

Slade sees Richard Williams, the sisters' father, as similar to the overbearing fathers of Jennifer Capriati, Jelena Dokic and Mary Pierce. He isn't much different than many other tennis dads who are sometimes out of line, she says.

Before the Williams sisters came along, Slade remembers, recruiting African American kids to play tennis was pretty tough. When Venus and Serena came along, she says. They made it easy, like Tiger (Woods) did in golf.

Most of the Johnston Y kids are from the City Within A City area of Charlotte, which targets at-risk kids and communities. They primarily come from Charlotte Housing Authority communities and the neighborhoods of Belmont, Optimist Park and Villa Heights. She's also worked with kids from Reid Park and Thomasboro, other low-income, predominantly black neighborhoods.

If you wonder about the impact, just ask the Johnston Y's Steele. Since her kids began in Slade's program three years ago, tennis has become a high priority. There are two things you can't take away around here without a fight -- tennis and swimming, Steele says.

Cecil Brandon, a stockbroker who teaches in Slade's summer program, praises the high number of kids she reaches. When I was younger, and a coach (Calvin Davis) took an interest in me, it made a huge difference, says Brandon, who played at East Mecklenburg High and attended the University of Alabama. With the type of volume she has, she's touching so many kids. That's invaluable.

One of the best things about her is she relates so well to young people, continues Brandon, who works for Josephtha1 & Co. She's firm when she needs to be, and always in a nurturing way. That's especially important for many of the (disadvantaged) kids who come through.

Says the Y's Steele, She keeps up with the kids and remembers them year to year. She comments to them on their progress. She's dedicated her whole life to kids and introducing them to sports opportunities.

When Slade came to Garinger as its tennis coach in 1997, it was a dream come true for the Burlington, NC native. She had always wanted to coach the sport she'd played for more than 25 years. (She's rated a 4.5 doubles player, which is good. 7.0 is a touring pro.) A sociology graduate of Barber Scotia, and a veteran middle school teacher, athletic director and basketball coach, she was ready for the challenge when she came to Garinger five years ago.

Tennis players were scarce and the courts were a mess. The asphalt was cracked, the nets were tattered and trash and broken glass were everywhere. Years before, the school had had a program under Coach Joyce Hunter, but after she retired, the school had gone through a series of coaches. Today, not surprisingly, there's a fresh coat of blue paint on the courts, a big Garinger Cats sign on the fence and not a drink cup or broken bottle in sight. I get great support from the community, Slade says.

Don't get me wrong; the sport is still not big at Garinger. And it probably never will be, for no fault of Slade's.

That's because most top tennis players in the state concentrate on the USTA junior circuit. Many don't even play on their high school team. Still, the sport gives more high school kids a chance to experience the benefit of a sport, and Garinger is no longer an automatic doormat in the conference.

We have had girls make all-conference, and we used to always be last, says Slade, now in the midst of her girls' season. Our boys are getting better, too.

Being a part of one of Slade's programs is not a casual undertaking. She expects youngsters to be on time, have their shoes tied and be ready to go. The kids know up front that she expects certain things, Brandon says. She runs her program in a particular way, and it's based on respect for people.

Slade has taken Garinger boys' tennis team to the Family Circle Cup twice, to serve as ball boys for the women's pro tournament. And she uses the occasions to teach lessons about life.

At the event this past spring in Charleston, her Garinger boys were playing rallyball between matches. The modified half-court tennis game intrigued their fellow ball boys, but they didn't have any racquets. So Slade encouraged her boys to share their racquets, teach their fellow ball boys the game, and work them into the competition.

By the end of the week, the two groups, which couldn't have been more disparate -- the Garinger boys were older, less skilled, more diverse and less affluent, while the others were younger, more skilled, almost all white and affluent -- were friends.

Some still keep in touch today, Slade says, happy she helped bring together the divergent groups. That's why I'm a coach. I help break down barriers.

Her kids loved the Family Cup experience, returning to Charlotte inspired. It was terrific, says Ademir Porcic, a Garinger player whose family is from Bosnia. We got to see all the stars. A 10th grader this year, he says, Now I want to practice more.

It's a bonding thing for my kids, Slade says. When they come back, they are a tennis team. So many of them play soccer, basketball or other sports and aren't true tennis players. When they come back, they are tennis players.

Garinger boys' basketball coach Bill Davis lauds her success. He helped her teach this past summer. Coach Slade has brought the kids to another level, says Davis, who has helped in her summer program. They show up when it's 95 or 100 degrees out there. They can't wait to come play. A lot of inner-city kids not only become tennis players but they learn discipline, honesty and respect. It's a joy for me to work with her.