Carson resident Timothy Bryant Jr. is on his way to New York shortly to indulge in three days of tennis fun and education.
Bryant is one of 14 winners of the 14th annual United States Tennis Association/National Junior Tennis and Learning Network (NJTL) Arthur Ashe Essay and Art Contest in the boys 10-to 18-year-old age category.
Bryant’s essay was selected from the more than 1,100 received for the entire contest, and the 350-word submission addressed the question “If Arthur Ashe were alive today, what do you think would give him hope?”
During his Aug. 24-26 stay in the Big Apple, Bryant will attend the 2012 Arthur Ashe Kids’ Day tennis event at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, and receive an NJTL award from former New York Mayor and USTA Board member David Dinkins.
Founded in 1969 by Ashe along with Charlie Pasarell and Sheridan Snyder, the NJTL network is a nationwide group of more than 600 nonprofit youth development organizations that provide free or low-cost tennis, education and life skills programming to more than 250,000 children each year.
Bryant is part of the LA84 Foundation NJTL chapter, which he joined in 2006. He was introduced to tennis at age 5 by his father, and says his essay was inspired by Ashe’s accomplishments on and off the court. “. . . he is a role model for individuals who believe that they can succeed if they put their minds to it.”
