Women's Club Tennis
"Leaders aren’t born, they are made. They are made by hard effort, which is the price which all of us must pay to achieve any goal which is worthwhile" - Vince Lombardi
What?
One of my favorite sports in the entire world is Tennis. I have played all throughout high school, earning MVP and senior awards, and then I played on Virginia Tech Club Tennis team for 3 years. When I was a freshman, I came to Virginia Tech to find out that Club Tennis was on suspension for the next two years. I was devastated. I wanted so badly to join a sports team because it was a team environment that I felt I truly shined. It was at this time I joined my sorority, Alpha Omega Epsilon which took up my time for the two years before Club Tennis came back. During the beginning of my junior year, I decided to attend tryouts for the new Club Tennis team. I broke my toe a few days before tryouts, but I showed up and decided to play as best I could. Through my determination and perseverance, I was able to earn myself a spot on the team.
So What?
Club tennis was now comprised of mostly new members, so instead of becoming a new member on an already established team, we were all new members that would establish the team's culture together. We all built a tennis community that held true to Virginia Tech's community standards. We all had our passion for tennis in common. Again, I was part of a team that shared common goals and common sports interest with different majors and different backgrounds. It was incredible to connect with these people and find my passion for the sport. Overall, I have made incredibly strong connections in my sport, and I hope to continue this sport for the rest of my life.
Leadership is evident through across the board in sports. There is responsibility no matter what position you play, team captain, managers, and maintaining individual responsibility along with showing commitment to the sport. I have had to play the role of coordinator, logistics, problem solver, and captain for a few of my tournament trips at Virginia Tech. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as part of a sports club at Virginia Tech. I loved it so much that I moved into a leadership position to move the team. I ran for fundraising chair because I had never been in a fundraising position and I wanted to learn about the responsibilities.
Leadership is evident through across the board in sports. There is responsibility no matter what position you play, team captain, managers, and maintaining individual responsibility along with showing commitment to the sport. I have had to play the role of coordinator, logistics, problem solver, and captain for a few of my tournament trips at Virginia Tech. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as part of a sports club at Virginia Tech. I loved it so much that I moved into a leadership position to move the team. I ran for fundraising chair because I had never been in a fundraising position and I wanted to learn about the responsibilities.
Now What?
Fundraising Chair
I was fundraiser chair for Fall 2014-Spring 2015. This involved choosing our fundraising goals, hosting fundraising activities. I chose fundraising activities that would serve multiple purposes including percent nights at Sweet Frog and Buffalo Wild Wings eating establishments, passing out Bookholders flyers, collecting donation cans as part of a fundraising contest within Virginia Tech Recreational Sports. I inspired and motivated other teams and participants to participate in our fundraising events. I worked closely with the President and Vice President of both women's and men's team to accomplish our goal of $500. Unfortunately, one of our percent nights was canceled due to weather conditions. Even though it did set our team back in our financial goals, it was more important to put our member's safety as first priority. Eventually, our team accomplished this goal through hard work and dedication. The fundraising opportunities also gave our team more face time with each other and the Virginia Tech community.
Team Officer
As a team officer, I have responsibilities such as driving the van, coordinating our schedules, and logistics, and making sure everyone has the opportunity to play. I was the team officer in charge for the Maryland tournament, so I was in charge of coordinating our team actions, during, and after the tournament. I drove a 12 person van for the first time, checked everyone into the hotel, communicated the match schedule, navigated a new city to the tournament location, motivated everyone to get up at 6:30 am in the morning, and finally doing my part to make sure everyone could play to the best of their abilities. I was also the officer in charge for a different tournament, going to take place at Richmond, VA as a day trip. I woke up in the early to check weather conditions for driving. Unfortunately, this was in the middle of February and it was snowing at an alarming rate. I checked all of the weather predictions and patterns for the day. Due to road conditions for myself and my other team mates, I decided to cancel the trip to not put anyone's safety at risk. The reality of being in a leadership position is making sure the right decisions are being made. Sometimes it is not the most popular decision, or it has to be made under unideal circumstances. Going through these experiences and making these experiences only prepare me for the future as I am sure these are not the last difficult I will have to make.
I was fundraiser chair for Fall 2014-Spring 2015. This involved choosing our fundraising goals, hosting fundraising activities. I chose fundraising activities that would serve multiple purposes including percent nights at Sweet Frog and Buffalo Wild Wings eating establishments, passing out Bookholders flyers, collecting donation cans as part of a fundraising contest within Virginia Tech Recreational Sports. I inspired and motivated other teams and participants to participate in our fundraising events. I worked closely with the President and Vice President of both women's and men's team to accomplish our goal of $500. Unfortunately, one of our percent nights was canceled due to weather conditions. Even though it did set our team back in our financial goals, it was more important to put our member's safety as first priority. Eventually, our team accomplished this goal through hard work and dedication. The fundraising opportunities also gave our team more face time with each other and the Virginia Tech community.
Team Officer
As a team officer, I have responsibilities such as driving the van, coordinating our schedules, and logistics, and making sure everyone has the opportunity to play. I was the team officer in charge for the Maryland tournament, so I was in charge of coordinating our team actions, during, and after the tournament. I drove a 12 person van for the first time, checked everyone into the hotel, communicated the match schedule, navigated a new city to the tournament location, motivated everyone to get up at 6:30 am in the morning, and finally doing my part to make sure everyone could play to the best of their abilities. I was also the officer in charge for a different tournament, going to take place at Richmond, VA as a day trip. I woke up in the early to check weather conditions for driving. Unfortunately, this was in the middle of February and it was snowing at an alarming rate. I checked all of the weather predictions and patterns for the day. Due to road conditions for myself and my other team mates, I decided to cancel the trip to not put anyone's safety at risk. The reality of being in a leadership position is making sure the right decisions are being made. Sometimes it is not the most popular decision, or it has to be made under unideal circumstances. Going through these experiences and making these experiences only prepare me for the future as I am sure these are not the last difficult I will have to make.