May 26, 2016
Evonne Goolagong Cawley MBE, AO is a firm believer that tennis can change lives … after all, it definitely changed hers.
She went from a young Wiradjuri girl dreaming of success in the small NSW town of Barellan to victory on the centre court at Wimbledon and being named Australian Of The Year.
Evonne and her husband of 41 years, Roger, were surrounded by children when they visited Murgon on Wednesday for a very special Indigenous Tennis Come & Try Day, the first held in the town.
A total of 52 children from five schools – St Mary’s Catholic College in Kingaroy, Wondai P-9, St Joseph’s Primary School in Murgon, Murgon State High School and Moffatdale State School – took part in the day.
Evonne told southburnett.com.au she wants to give other Indigenous children the same opportunities that she enjoyed as a young person, the helping hand which set her on the path to a tennis career.
“My husband Roger put together the whole program,” Evonne said.
“It is incentive-based. It’s all about keeping the kids in school.”
The first step is the “Come & Try” day.
From this, between five and 15 children are selected – “the kids who are really listening” – for further free coaching at their local tennis club.
The couple has been working with Indigenous kids since 2005 but in 2012 established the not-for-profit Evonne Goolagong Foundation to expand the concept.
“If they attend the coaching lessons, and stay at school, the Foundation will help them attend State tennis camps,” Evonne said.
From there, the students have an opportunity to attend a national camp which is held at Monash University in Melbourne during the week of the Australian Open.
Students can also earn scholarships to assist them at high school or to attend university.
“Fifty-three scholarships have already been given out and 15 students are going to uni this year,” Evonne said.
Evonne recalled that the townspeople in Barallan in southern NSW had helped her when she was a young girl.
“They saw me hitting a ball against the wall each day,” she said.
“Coaches saw how keen I was and asked the local townspeople to help me.”
When she was still very young, she was given the opportunity of moving to Sydney for coaching and to play in junior tournaments.
She attended Willoughby Girls High School where she was the only Aboriginal girl in the school.
Evonne admitted that for a while she cried every night, missing her home, but she stayed on as she just loved playing tennis.
Students that have gone through the program with Evonne and Roger now often join them at the Come & Try Days to lend a hand.
“We are like a family really,” Evonne said. “It’s fantastic.”
This is the first time the Evonne Goolagong Foundation had held a Come & Try Day in Murgon, but it won’t be the last.
“We’ll definitely be coming back next year,” she said.
- External link: Evonne Goolagong Foundation
Footnote: Evonne’s tennis career is truly exceptional. She was ranked number one in the world in 1971 and 1976, won 92 professional tournaments and was a finalist in 18 Grand Slam events. She won Wimbledon twice, the Australian Open four times, the French Open once and was runner-up four years in a row at the US Open. At her second Wimbledon victory in 1980, Evonne became the first mother to win since Dorothy Lambert Chambers in 1914.
 |
 |
