By SERGIO CARMONA
for the South Florida Sun Sentinel
The Israel Tennis & Education Centers’ annual “Playing for Peace” tennis exhibition at Wycliffe Golf and Country Club in Wellington. (Israel Tennis & Education Centers/Courtesy)
The Israel Tennis & Education Centers’ annual “Playing for Peace” tennis exhibition at Wycliffe Golf and Country Club in Wellington drew 350 people.
For nearly five decades, ITEC has used tennis as a vehicle to provide opportunities for all Israeli children, including Jewish, Muslim and Christian, as well as those in often underserved communities such as Druze, Bedouins and others.
The fundraising event at Wycliffe’s stadium court provided an opportunity for ITEC’s diverse members to showcase and apply the skills and values that they have learned at the organization’s 17 tennis centers in Israel. Attendees also heard stories from alumni of the organization and witnessed collaborations between Israeli children of all backgrounds.
Yoni Yair, ITEC’s Vice President of development and an alumnus of the organization, said there were many highlights for the event.
“The turnout was outstanding and a lot of new members who joined us were impressed by our work,” he said. “There was also the opportunity of having our graduates attend and sharing their success stories, which was different from previous years when we brought a younger delegation.”
Yair continued, “Due to COVID, we had older members who spoke about the life journey and the impact of the ITEC.”
“It was a diverse team led by Nadine Fahoum, a Muslim Arab, who participated in our Living Together/Coexistence Program ad played #1 for Duke University both in singles and doubles,” he continued.
Yair also said, “I was so touched by the warmth of our friends and supporters who attended, and the electric atmosphere during the exhibition.”
“It felt like the Olympics,” he said. “The community embraced our delegation so beautifully and listened very carefully to the compelling stories. It was a memorable day.”
Marty Ross, event co-chair along with his wife Harriet Ross, said, “There were so many newcomers to the Florida market and many of those were in tears from the emotion of learning about this.”
“The people who were there, loved hearing and meeting some of the older kids or people who had grown up in the ITEC Program and how they are giving back,” Ross continued.
Ross said the reason he and his wife brought the event to Wycliffe was to expose the ITEC’s story. He noted that the organization’s story is about helping children of all denominations learn how to live with each other and contribute to society.
“Tennis is just a tool to accomplish the goal,” he said. “Somebody doesn’t need to be a racket sports enthusiast to appreciate the story.”
Ross noted, “The theme is so simple:when you get on a playing field, no matter what color you are and no matter what religion you are, you learn to be nice, be mature and work together to have fun, win a game and co-exist with each other.”Yair said, “Our goal is to showcase our meaningful and important work that we do in our 17 centers in Israel.”
“Many of them are located in underprivileged neighborhoods,” he said. “What we do in these centers is way beyond tennis. Tennis is just the vehicle to get our children to participate in our programs.”
Yair continued, “It’s fun to see the kids in action, but it’s more important to hear their compelling stories and have the opportune learn about the diversity we have.”
As an alumnus for the organization, Yair said, “On a personal level for me, it was the place where I had the opportunity to grow, to develop and to get educational benefits.”
“I had great mentors and I had great role models,” he continued. “For me, the coaches were like family. I was able to share with them a lot of personal things that helped me when I was young. It made a huge impact on my life, and this is why I’m part of it and why I want to give back and continue for many many more years.”
Visit itecenters.org for more information on the organization.