The Mission

Tennis equals self-confidence plus community

DhhEAF Tennis Lessons

At Deerfield Elementary School 19 fifth and sixth graders are practicing tennis. Instead of the expected shrieks, laughter, and juvenile banter there is eye contact, silent smiles and gesticulating hands. The sounds of sneakers squeaking, rackets hitting balls and the occasional vocal utterance dominate the air when deaf children play tennis.

“Tennis is perfect for hearing impaired students because there are no bells or whistles associated with this sport,” says Roy Trafalski, whose energy at 52 matches the 10 and 11-yearolds.

Roy is the founder and Director of the Deaf and hard of hearing Educational Athletic Foundation (DhhEAF). The program teaches the fundamentals of tennis to students at 12 public schools throughout Los Angeles. But the goal is not to produce Wimbledon champions. 

“It’s less about tennis than it is about letting them have fun, building their self-confidence, teaching them social skills, helping them make new friends and emphasizing education,” says Roy.

Deafness shrouds these children in a cruel illusion. They appear to be regular kids who simply use sign language to function normally. In reality hearing-impaired children often struggle with school, making friends and receiving parental attention.

The adolescent deaf community, especially the lower-income populations that DhhEAF predominately serves, is an overlooked group. At school English is a second language for deaf children – there are discrepancies between the structures of English and Sign Language that complicate reading and writing.

A lack of parental communication also plagues deaf children. As many as 71% of parents with deaf children do not use Sign Language regularly in the home. This often causes low self-esteem and behavioral problems in these children. Roy explains, “The parents want to believe that their child will learn to speak, to lip-read and function in the hearing world; so it’s kind of a rationalization for parents not to learn Sign.”

Using tennis, DhhEAF attempts to combat these problems and make school fun.

After a volley drill, the kids form a line along the fence. Roy points to a husky girl with short black hair. Shyness overtakes her, and she must be coaxed to leave the line with slumped shoulders. Roy enthusiastically asks the class to, “watch her footwork. It’s excellent,” mouthing the words and signing simultaneously. The demonstration complete; Roy smiles at her, exclaiming, “Perfect footwork. Perfect!” The girl returns to the line with a smile on her face and head held high. Hopefully she’s going to go back [to class], and take that with her for the rest of the day,” Roy says.

Encouragement and praise is given without hesitation. The kids are taught how to give a proper handshake, with eye contact and a firm hand. He believes it is a nonverbal way to show confidence and trust. The session ends with him walking down the line, shaking hands with each child, mouthing, “Thank you.”

Excited by his idea, Roy wandered through the nonprofit world for a year before finding Community Partners in 2002. All the meetings, breakfasts, and lectures he had previously attended got him no closer to finding a supportive partner to help achieve his dream.

“Looking back I wasted a lot of time. Because of that I understand the value Community Partners brings to the table. I didn’t have the money or the wherewithal to do everything, so without Community Partners we would not have gotten off the ground,” says Roy.

SOURCE: Community Partners 2005-2006 Biennial Report

PROJECT STATUS: DhhEAF has been a project of Community Partners since 2002 and continues to enrich the deaf and hard of hearing community through the sport of tennis.

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