Companionship on the court: BBHS junior uses tennis to bond with folks with disabilities
May 9, 2024 at 12:16 a.m.
Every soft thud of a neon tennis ball whacking against a racket was met with encouraging cheers and laughter—an endearing accompaniment to the fresh breeze welcoming the sunny warmth of May.
Respectfully confined to just one of the four nets, seven girls played on the Harkness Park tennis courts adjacent to Blind Brook High School on May 1, a few minutes after school got out on early dismissal that Wednesday. Between the light exercises, water breaks and a variety of spur-of-the-moment games, they’d get preoccupied by conversation about hobbies, passions and general life.
Blind Brook High School senior Zoey Possick (left) exclaims “we need you on our tennis team” to Dejahnae “Dee Dee” Ashman as they chat on the Harkness Park tennis courts. The two have gotten to know each other over the last 18 months and have become friends.By Sarah Wolpoff
They played—hung out—as any group of friends typically would.
“Even if just three balls are hit over the net today, what matters are these conversations. That’s what this is about,” said Todd Bazzini, the Blind Brook High School varsity tennis coach. “That’s what makes today a success, because some of these guys aren’t always able to have these conversations.”
Four of the girls on the court were Blind Brook varsity tennis players, there due to the organizational efforts of junior Ella Mensch. The other three, who have become increasingly familiar with the school over the last 18 months, were visiting as participants of The Arc Westchester.
A participant of The Arc Westchester, Stefanie Introcaso is putting in the practice to reliably volley back the tennis ball.By Sarah Wolpoff
The Arc Westchester, the local chapter of a national organization, is the largest agency in the county supporting folks with developmental disabilities. From residential fulfillment to enrichment activities to securement of work and volunteer opportunities, the non-profit dependent on state grants and donations aims to give its clients greater quality of life and autonomy.
“I really love helping the community,” said Mensch, 17, of her volunteer work. “These days together are about being encouraging, spending time outside, and just letting everyone get to know each other. It’s a lot of learning, supporting, cheering and hugs.”
“I was a little nervous at first because it’s something new; I had never done anything like this,” said junior Madilyn Klein, a varsity tennis player who has volunteered a few times over the year. “But everyone I’ve met is so wonderful, it’s been so fun and nice.”
For Bazzini, a Port Chester resident, coaching Blind Brook tennis is the side gig—his career is in the work Arc is dedicated to. From programming and grant writing work for the Special Olympics, he joined the Hawthorne-based non-profit five years ago as the director of volunteer services and fund development.
Blind Brook tennis players and girls visiting from The Arc Westchester line up for a group photo. From the back left: Madilyn Klein, Ava Vickers, Todd Bazzini, Ella Mensch and Zoey Possick. Front left: Samantha Schulze, Dejahnae “Dee Dee” Ashman and Stefanie Introcaso.By Sarah Wolpoff
“I’ve been working with people with intellectual disabilities for a very long time,” he said, standing outside the tennis court as the girls did their warm stretches. He was there to oversee, not get involved—that day was about the clients, young adults in their 20s, bonding with other girls of similar age.
“Our organization works with about 2,000 people every single day,” he said. “We’re preparing them to have independence in their lives and we have all these programs that help them support that journey. Whether it’s early-childhood intervention, schooling, all the way through guardianship, it’s really the arc of life, that’s kind of the idea.”
Mensch, already on a mission to find a way to use tennis as a charitable outlet, found the perfect match while chatting with her coach about her ambition.
“I bonded with him because, well, being a high schooler is mentally draining, so sometimes I’d go on the court and let all my emotions out and it wouldn’t end up well for anyone,” she explained. “He kind of helped me work through that, and when I was doing some research to give him a gift, I figured out he worked with the Arc. Our gift to him was a donation to the organization, but then I started talking to him about ways I could use tennis to volunteer.”
Since the Fall of 2022, she’s ensured early dismissal “three-quarter” days at the high school aren’t going to waste. Instead of heading home, she and a few recruited volunteers from her team will stick around to welcome visitors from The Arc Westchester.
Members of the Blind Brook varsity tennis squad and visitors from The Arc Westchester line up to play the tennis game fruit salad on Wednesday, May 1.By Sarah Wolpoff
On nice days, they’ll stay outside so the high schoolers can teach their new friends some tennis basics. When the weather isn’t so welcoming, they go indoors for activities—beading has become the clear favorite; it’s calming for everyone.
“I bring everything. Because I’m living in a house with three girls, there’s a surplus of everything craft related,” Mensch laughed.
She recalled a day they stayed in to make posters supporting Blind Brook sports teams together, which became a fruitless project in hindsight because they got ruined by the rain when the girls left. But that was OK, she said, because it wasn’t the point.
“We’re there to talk and get to know each other,” she said. “We’ve created these friendships, and it’s opened our eyes to a different side of the community.
“I’ve learned that everyone’s the same in a way; everyone’s hearts are in the same place,” she continued. “And it just makes me happy. Once I made a bracelet for a girl, and when I saw her a few weeks ago at a benefit I was volunteering at, she was wearing it. That’s how she remembers me. It made me feel great.”
Zoey Possick, a senior, has been volunteering whenever she can since Mensch started organizing the activities.
Laughing together, Blind Brook High School volunteers junior Ella Mensch (left) and senior Madilyn Klein make all the participants run around the court while playing fruit salad.By Sarah Wolpoff
A life-changing passion project, it inspired her to find more ways to do similar work, she described. Now, she also works with the ACEing Autism program that runs out of the Westchester Tennis Center in Port Chester.
“I’ve gotten really involved because I like being able to share something I love with people who are just as excited to be here and learn about it,” Possick said. “The energy really speaks to me. I’m so happy being here, that’s why I keep coming back. Everyone is so happy and excited, and I like being a part of something that makes peoples’ day. That’s really meaningful to me.”
Though not always, Blind Brook students have often found themselves hanging out with the same group of girls from The Arc Westchester. Possick feels that’s allowed friendships to organically form over longer periods of time.
“Dee Dee, for example, when I first met her, she was really shy. She was definitely a little slower to come out of her shell,” she recalled. “But one time we were all making friendship bracelets, and I was just talking to them and asking all sorts of questions, and she got so excited to be included and share things about her life. We have a lot in common…I think it’s really sweet to see that they’re finding we can connect and bond about all types of things.”
The connections the girls are finding are what Bazzini described as the “win-win” crux of these volunteer opportunities.
When folks from different walks of life can have conversations about their commonalities, differences and struggles, he said, it leads the way to a more empathetic world—and on Blind Brook High School’s three-quarter days, more fun on the court.
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