profiles
2 • July 14, 2011
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Liberty Lake Community Tennis Association aims to strengthen community spirit through sport By Kelly Moore
Junior Golf
Weeks available:
July 25-29 Aug 8-12 Aug 22-26 $60 per week Mon - Fri:
1102 N. Liberty Lake Rd.
9 am - 10 am Beginners 10 am - 11 am Intermediates 11 am - 12 am Intermediates
Tues-Thurs:
8 am - 11:30 am Novice
928-3484 • Call the Pro Shop for more information.
Splash Staff Writer
The Liberty Lake Community Tennis Association sprouted up just a few years ago when a handful of residents banded together over their love for the sport. The group’s first season kicked off in 2008 with a community blitz in everything from big events like the United States Tennis Association (USTA) summer tennis block party to handing out information at the Liberty Lake Farmers Market. With the word out, LLCTA hopes to continue to grow community spirit through the sport of tennis while growing itself along the way. The Splash recently sat down with LLCTA President Frank Cruz-Aedo to learn more about the group and what it offers to interested players.
Q. A.
Submitted photo
A Liberty Lake Community Tennis Association member perfects her serve at Monday’s open tennis night. The club meets weekly at Rocky Hill Park to practice techniques and pair up for matches.
You guys are still a fairly new organization. How did LLCTA get started?
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21605 E. Country Vista Dr. 509.210.7014
It all started back in 2005 when I wrote a letter to the editor at The Splash about having a vision for a Liberty Lake tennis club. I was excited about the possibility of that maybe happening in the future because I knew there were people in the community interested in tennis. Liberty Lake is just such a perfect community for tennis. There are a lot of people who are active and have healthy lifestyles — people here golf or maybe enjoy hiking or jogging or doing triathlons. Tennis is just a perfect compliment to that. The group was officially established in 2008. Q: What makes LLCTA a unique organization? A: I’m familiar with other tennis associations in the area, and they’re not about the community, which is OK because those groups have a different set of goals. Their main deal is just to put on annual summer tournaments and league play. Anyone can play, but they’re not about building community through the sport of tennis. That’s what the LLCTA was always meant to be from the very beginning. We’re all Liberty Lake residents, and we all love Liberty Lake. We want to pro-
Liberty Lake Community Tennis Association Founded 2008
Meets Mondays 6-8 p.m. at Rocky Hill Park
Members 25
Who’s invited All ages and skill levels
mote the sport of tennis, and we want to build community spirit while we’re doing it. It’s such a great sport to meet new people and make new friends. Q: What are some of the things you have been able to do to support that mission? A: A lot. I was talking with Kathy Whybrew, a founding member, about how much we pulled off in our first couple years. One of the first things we did our first year that we want to eventually make an annual thing is the USTA summer tennis block party. It was huge; it was awesome. It was so much work, but it was worth it. There were so many people involved as volunteers. We had about 100 people
See TENNIS, page 19