Tennis nonprofit gets kids ‘outside, doing something and feeling safe’

Four-year-old Will Krieger started playing tennis back in February, after his mom, Heather Krieger, saw a Facebook flyer for a new tennis program at the Bessie Rowell Community Center in Franklin.

Five months in, he’s the one asking to come back every weekend. The family goes every Saturday and Sunday to the youth tennis lessons and family pickleball events hosted by CourtBloom, a new nonprofit finding its footing in the city.

Will’s friend, Lucas Segedy, also got involved with the program back in February. The two met a year ago through a local play group, and his mom, Cassie Segedy, quickly became friends with Heather, as well.

“It’s hard to find a way to get kids and your energy out in the winter, so that’s why I was like, ‘Oh my God, it’s perfect. It’s the middle of winter, and we can go inside and run around for half an hour twice a weekend,'” said Cassie.

The Segedys had stopped attending as summer got busy and the program moved outdoors to Odell Park, but Lucas recently asked to rejoin the program.

“I was like, why not? We’re around, and it’s free, and he likes it,” Cassie said.

Grant Workman, the program’s executive director and main coach, has been holding a racket since he was a toddler. His older brother was playing, so he got interested, too.

As he taught tennis lessons, he noticed other kids influenced their siblings in a similar way.

“When I was teaching private lessons in Texas, I kept on getting lessons with two and three-year-olds because they’d go with their brother and then their sibling would watch. I’m like, ‘Hey, come on in!’ And then, I started integrating it,” he said.

After coming across the lessons happening on the Odell Park tennis courts, Sarah Koelle signed her sons up on the spot. Neither had played before.

Damian, 6, was eager to jump in and start playing, while Toby, 5, was a little more hesitant. After a while, Damian was able to convince his younger brother to join him on the court, eager to teach what he had just learned.

CourtBloom offers free lessons for kids ages two through 12, divided into three age groups. After each lesson, bagels are provided for the kids.

Each bagel comes with cream cheese and an inspirational message written on the bag.

“Our goal is we want to make sure that kids don’t go without food, but we don’t want to feel like they’re going somewhere to get food,” said Workman. “It’s really hard if you have food insecurity and you say, ‘Hey, go to the food drive,’ because people don’t want to go all over the food drive. It’s like it’s admitting that you’re having issues. If you have a program where you integrate it into the program, then they’re here to play tennis and, oh, they also get bagels, too.”

Workman hopes to create a safe space for kids to hang out, even if they aren’t actively playing.

“I mean, I don’t care if the kids get better at tennis. It’d be nice if they did,” he said, “but the whole point is getting them outside, doing something and feeling safe.”

Heather Krieger has also found that the program teaches important life skills to her son.

“He thinks he’s just out there playing, but he’s learning how to play a sport. And he’s also socializing with kids his age and learning to wait in line and take turns, and so it’s beneficial all around,” she said.

CourtBloom has already partnered with the Paul Smith and Jennie D. Blake Schools to bring tennis to elementary students. Workman wants to integrate with as many elementary schools as possible because “any school, no matter where you’re at, no matter what income level, there’s kids that need us there.”

He hopes that as the program draws more kids in, the rest of the family will join. He believes that once the children are involved, it becomes easier to get the rest of the family playing, too.

Workman also plans to partner with local businesses. For the month of September, Franklin’s Waterhorse Irish Pub will provide food for the kids, and the restaurant is hoping others in the community will step in and do the same.

A Gilford native, Workman said he chose Franklin as CourtBloom’s home because “it’s a place that has so much potential, but it’s just not quite there … just something about it isn’t just blowing up like it should.”

As families start to frequent Franklin, he hopes that they’ll start to explore what else the city has to offer, highlighting downtown’s restaurants, shops and Mill City Park.