This month’s SPT Athlete Feature is Myles. He has been playing tennis with Special Pops for more than 8 years! When asked what his favorite part of SPT is, Myles had this to say:
“I love serving behind the white and blue line because you get to hit the ball after you toss it. Also, you get a lot of turns to serve. Socializing is my second favorite part of SPT. I love getting to hang out with all of my friends at the LifeTime training academy for practice and tournaments.”
Myles also enjoys bowling, baseball, soccer, swimming, and running track. He is an orange belt in taekwondo and can break a board with one kick! He is currently a senior in high school while simultaneously working on job training with Warren Technical High School in Dekalb County. In the future, he would like to go to college and be able to live on his own by taking care of and providing for himself through a job. We asked Myles if he would recommend SPT to other people and said that he already has! He is proud to be a part of SPT and him and his family tell anyone and everyone they can about it. In fact, they have recruited a lot of new athletes to SPT just by word of mouth! Since this month is #disabilityawarenessmonth and Myles and his family are big advocates for people with disabilities we asked what he would like other people to know about having a disability, he had this to say:
“I would like people to know that I will always do my best! People with disabilities can do anything as long as they try their best! That’s why I love SPT, because they help us to do our best!”
We asked mom about her advocating for people with disabilities and she said this:
“Our mantra is: When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion. We say this because a single strand of web could never tie up a lion, but if we bring all of our webs together, we can do so much more to advocate for the people who need it most.”
Mom also said that she loves Myles being a part of SPT because it not only provides him with a physical activity that he loves but it also gives him a social arena that he wouldn’t normally have. She also loves that he has learned a lot of discipline through playing tennis. She is especially grateful to Jim and all of the board member and volunteers who continuously dedicate their time and efforts to these athletes.
Jim Hamm on Myles and his family: “Myles and his mom fully represent what Special Pops Tennis strives to achieve. While, the child grows in their tennis skills, we more so want them to grow as people through experiences that challenge and support through learning new skills, meeting new friends, and going to new places. Parents, like Deidra, help spread the word about Special Pops Tennis. This allows SPT to become partners with the family as members of the extended family. Our value is the life lessons learned; but as Deidra mentioned our strength is in the “web we weave”! Myles has a smile that is infectious, and his work ethic is recognized by the coaches that work with him as he always is willing to give his best effort!”
