Elizabeth Barnhill

Lisa Hoffstein is a perfect spotlight for December where we are highlighting both serving and receiving.  As a young girl, Lisa received the gift of being part of a tennis family, watching her older brothers and parents play.  She says “When I began playing, the tennis pro told my mother she should sign me up for tournaments.  In my first tournament in the 10-and-unders, I lost in the first round 6-0, 6-0.  My mother thought that was going to be the end for me until I got off the court and cheerfully asked her when I could sign up for the next one.”

From that beginning, Lisa has fond memories of playing Eastern tennis tournaments as a junior as well as with her dad and loved it when he would call his guy friends to ask “Is it ok if I bring Lisa down to be our fourth?”  With her strong background, she – —N  was recruited to play on the tennis team at the University of Pennsylvania where she made life-long friendships with fellow teammates.  Lisa says, “I continue to cherish all that tennis has given me.  Tennis keeps me fit and active and healthy.  I have received so much from my teammates and partners as well as my opponents, captains and coaches.”

As a young adult, Lisa understood that the opportunities she had been afforded were not given to everyone.  She says, “I took this with me through my adult life and did my small part in designing and running programs that provided opportunities to young people in inner-city neighborhoods.  My passion is providing organized sports for girls in communities that offer little or no programming.”

In 2006, Lisa began a multi-sport organization called The Katie At the Bat Team–A Non-Profit Helping Kids Hit Home Runs in Life.  According to Lisa, “Nothing gave me more pleasure than to introduce children to tennis, empowering them by putting a racket in their hands and cheering them on with every forehand and backhand.”  Most significant was what tennis had to offer students from an impoverished upbringing.  All children in the program were welcomed to the beautiful facilities at the University of Pennsylvania. They were taught tennis fundamentals along with tennis etiquette and relished the opportunity to demonstrate their new skills and behaviors and support their classmates in mutual pursuit. They were grateful for being introduced to role models such as Arthur Ashe and Althea Gibson.  They felt welcomed to a world that they had not previously participated in, and, perhaps most importantly, each child received personalized attention for putting in good effort with good sportsmanship. Lisa summed up the experience of those who became involved with the program:  ”We all received so much from watching the kids’ lives grow through tennis.  It was life-affirming for all of us.”

Lisa continues, “Some of my favorite memories were when we would bring the kids to the Germantown Cricket Club in the summer to watch the Women’s Grass Court Nationals.  The beloved tournament director, Melissa Jackson, would welcome our young campers, and players from around the country, with their musical accents and range of ethnicities, would talk to the kids about tennis, hard work, friendship, and life.  We would then have a special lunch on the porch and the children were enraptured by the Germantown pro staff who treated them to a clinic on the grass courts. No doubt that what everyone received on those special days was priceless, full of memory and delight.”  

Lisa says she is sticking with her goal of winning a silver or gold ball, but she also values the other aspects of playing tournaments as well as playing socially with friends for the fun of the game.  She continues to play with her family and enjoys playing mixed doubles with her husband, Paul, competing in husband/wife events, and best of all, playing family doubles with her own children.

Lisa has received well-deserved recognition for all that she has given.  She has been the recipient of the Rolex/ITA Achievement Award–in recognition of outstanding career achievements and contributions to society and has been inducted into both the University of Pennsylvania Tennis Hall of Fame and the Philadelphia Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, not only for her tennis play, but for all the ways she has served her community.  NWTO congratulates Lisa on her many accomplishments and thanks her for all her efforts to share her tennis passion with so many children throughout Philadelphia.