The following story was reposted with permission from the Credit One Charleston Open.
The Credit One Charleston Open celebrated its official nonprofit partner, Meeting Street Schools, with a charity pro-am fundraiser on Sunday at LTP-Daniel Island.
The event, featuring a host of current/former pros including John Isner, Tracy Austin, Sam Querrey, Steve Johnson, Jen Brady, Hailey Baptiste and Desirae Krawczyk, as well as local favorites Emma Navarro and Shelby Rogers, netted $50,000 for the nonprofit, whose mission is to empower children through educational opportunities in South Carolina.
“It’s wonderful to be able to come out, have fun and meet these amazing people. It’s all for a good cause,” said the Mount Pleasant native Rogers, a former Roland Garros and US Open quarterfinalist who retired last year. “Just the way that tennis can bring people together and put smiles on people’s faces.”
Proceeds will support the creation of classroom libraries across a network of schools. The funds will also be used to expand enrichment programs, offering students opportunities to explore activities like music and yoga.
“Meeting Street Schools is the most rewarding work we get to do, and also the hardest,” said Charleston Tennis LLC owner Ben Navarro. “We have four schools today of about 2,000 kids. We have a mix from a private to a charter school to two neighborhood public schools that we run, all in under-resourced areas.”
“We all have levels of defense when things go wrong, family support systems, friends, places that we can go. In many cases, our schools are our last line of defense. That’s what makes the work so meaningful.”
Meeting Street Schools is the official nonprofit partner of the Credit One Charleston Open.
