Yonkers Tennis Center General Manager Simon Gale Part of White House Tennis Event, Easter Egg Roll

Former Tennis Champions Joined in USTA’s 10 and Under Tennis On-Court Tennis
Activities

White Plains, N.Y. (April 9, 2012) – The United States Tennis Association (USTA)
announced its partnership with the National Park Foundation, the official charity of
America’s national parks, to support the 2012 White House Easter Egg Roll.
The 2012 Easter Egg Roll, which took place April 9th on the South Lawn of the White
House, is focused on promoting health and wellness with the theme, “Let’s Go, Let’s
Play, Let’s Move!” All of the activities encourage children to lead healthy and active lives,
which is a central part of the First Lady’s ‘Let’s Move!’ initiative, a national campaign to
combat childhood obesity.
This is the third consecutive year that the USTA has been involved in the annual event.
Celebrating this year’s White House Easter Egg Roll theme “Let's Go, Let's Play, Let's
Move,” the USTA offered 10 and Under Tennis courts for kids to play on in support of
the First Lady’s initiative to get kids active.
The 10 and Under Tennis initiative is part of an effort to encourage young people across
the country to get moving and start playing tennis. 10 and Under Tennis focuses on
getting more kids playing tennis by using modified equipment and courts tailored to a
child’s size. Featuring shorter and lighter racquets, slower‐bouncing balls, smaller courts
and simplified scoring, children learn to play more quickly and easily while having more
fun in the process.
Yonkers Tennis Center General Manager Simon Gale was one of a handful of tennis
professionals invited to work at the event. He was joined by current and former tennis
stars, including Andy Roddick, Chris Evert, Michael Chang, Christina McHale, Jack Sock,
Vania King, Katrina Adams, Taylor Dent and Bethanie Mattek‐Sands, who were on‐hand
throughout the day, coaching and working with children with the 10 and Under Tennis
on‐court activities.
“It was the most amazing tennis event I’ve ever been a part of,” said Gale, who has 23
years in the industry. “The amount of kids we were able to expose to 10 and Under
Tennis was fantastic.”
“It’s an honor for the USTA to once again be part of the annual Easter tradition at the
White House,” said Jon Vegosen, Chairman of the Board and President, USTA. “The
White House and First Lady’s support of tennis by showcasing it as a model sport to get
kids active, moving and having fun is very gratifying for the USTA’s efforts as we
promote tennis throughout the country.”
This was the 134th annual White House Easter Egg Roll with more than 30,000 people
visiting the South Lawn for games, stories, and, of course, the traditional egg roll.
Souvenir White House Easter eggs first became an annual keepsake in 1981, when
President and Mrs. Ronald Reagan hosted a hunt for wooden eggs that bore the
signatures of famous people. The tradition continues this year with the addition of an
official First Dog “Bo” egg. These collector’s eggs are available to view or purchase at
www.easter.nationalparks.org.
To learn more about the Easter Egg Roll visit www.whitehouse.gov/eastereggroll.
The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S. and the
leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level ‐‐ from local
communities to the highest level of the professional game. A not‐for‐profit organization
with more than 785,000 members, it invests 100% of its proceeds in growing the game.
It owns and operates the US Open, the highest attended annual sporting event in the
world, and launched the Emirates Airline US Open Series linking 10 summer
tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns the approximately 90 Pro Circuit
events throughout the U.S, and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Fed Cup, Olympic
and Paralympic Games. The USTA philanthropic entity, USTA Serves, provides grants
and scholarships and helps underserved youth and people with disabilities. For more
information on the USTA, log on to usta.com, “like” the official Facebook page
facebook.com/usta or follow @usta on Twitter.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL PARK FOUNDATION The National Park Foundation is the
official charity of America’s 394 national parks, including the South Lawn of the White
House. NPF assists in the coordination and planning of the annual White House Easter
Egg Roll and also accepts donations to benefit the event. Chartered by Congress, NPF
works hand in hand with the National Park Service to strengthen and connect all
Americans to our parks, so they are protected for present and future generations. It is a
legacy that began more than a century ago, when private citizens took action to first
establish, then protect and endow our national parks. Today, the National Park
Foundation carries on that tradition as the only national charitable partner for America’s
national parks. To learn more visit www.nationalparks.org.
Join us – This is Your Land. www.nationalparks.org
FACEBOOK http://www.facebook.com/nationalpark
TWITTER http://twitter.com/goparks
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