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AWARDS & HONORS

2020:  USTA NC "Diversity Outreach & Inclusion Award"

2020:  StarNews Media LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD - Lenny Simpson

 

2020:  St. Stephens AME Zion Church "Trailblazer's Award"

2020: New Zion Missionary Baptist Church "Service To The Community" Plaque
 

2020:  Southern Tennis Hall of Fame Inductee - Lenny Simpson

2020:  National Black Professional Athlete Foundation awards Lenny Simpson       
           with "Business & Community All Star" award

2020 Honors

  • Historic Wilmington Foundation presents a historic plaque for the home at 1406 Orange Street

  • Citi Taste of Tennis live cooking show selects One Love for December 15th holiday episode

  • One Love kid, Luca Duma, wins USTA Foundation National Essay Contest for NC 10U

  • CBS shows "Althea & Arthur" featuring One Love during "Portraits in Black" special program

  • One Love received a "spotlight" in the USTA Southern “Talking Tennis Southern Style” October podcast

  • Faith Driven Athlete published a blog entitled “What Took You So Long, Champ?” telling the story of Lenny meeting Althea Gibson at age 5

  • One Love kid, Gabriel Baldwin, was chosen by Fila as a "Standout of the Week"

  • Spectrum News featured One Love with kids from the YMCA in “Barrier Breaking Tennis Player Gives Back”

  • One Love was featured on Tennis Channel Live: “Game Changer - Althea Gibson’s Broad Impact Across The Globe In Sports”

  • Commission On African-American History announced they will place a street-side marker in front of the home at 1406 Orange Street

2019:  USTA NC Carlton T Harris Professional of the Year

2019:  "Service Above Self" Award presented by D.A. Ben David

2019:  USTA "50 For 50" - NJTL's top 50 influential people list

2019:  Winner of USTA National NJTL Founder's Service Award (The Arthur Ashe Award)

2019 Honors from the USTA

  • Selected from over 300 NJTL chapters to appear at the 2019 US Open on Center Court inside Arthur Ashe Stadium for a skills demonstration just before the opening Men's and Women's matches.

  • Selected to perform the ceremonial coin flip between opponents before the match.  We were given two coin flips!

  • Front row seats to the Althea Gibson Statue unveiling ceremony on Monday, August 26, 2019.

  • Invited by the USTA to sit in the President's Suite during Arthur Ashe Kids Day Celebration inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

  • Invited by USTA to 2019 Fed Cup to perform skills demonstrations before the matches.

  • Invited by USTA to escort both American and Netherlands Fed Cup team members onto the court for opening ceremonies.

 

2018:  Winner of USTA Southern Educational Merit Award

2018:  Winner of USTA NC Educational Merit Award

2018 Honors from the USTA:  

  • Selected from over 300 NJTL chapters to appear at the 2018 US Open on Court 17 "The Backyard" for a skills demonstration just before the opening Men's match.

  • Selected to perform the ceremonial coin flip between opponents before the match.

  • Invited by the USTA to sit in the President's Suite during Arthur Ashe Kids Day Celebration inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

  • Invited by USTA to 2018 Fed Cup to perform skills demonstrations before the matches.

  • Invited by USTA to escort both American and Australian Fed Cup team members onto the court for opening ceremonies.

2017:  Winner of USTA Southern Merilyn Sherman "Spirit of the Game" Award

2017 Honors from the USTA:  

  • Invited by the USTA to sit in the President's Suite during Arthur Ashe Kids Day Celebration inside Arthur Ashe Stadium.

2017:  Winner of USTA NC NJTL Chapter Of The Year

Note:  USTA NC is the State of North Carolina.  
          USTA Southern is a 9-state region including Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi,
          North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee. 

 

StarNews Media presents Lenny Simpson with 2020 LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

                                   Click HERE to read the Star News Article

SOUTHERN TENNIS HALL OF FAME INDUCTION WEEKEND

Saturday, January 18, 2020
Atlanta Perimeter Marriot

Lenny Simpson is inducted into the Southern Tennis Hall of Fame.

View the picture gallery -->

USTA NJTL FOUNDER'S SERVICE AWARD:  2019 Recipient, Lenny Simpson

CRITERIA

Persons must have promoted the principles of Arthur Ashe - including character and citizenship, demonstrated leadership skills in youth development and made outstanding contributions to the development and/or sustainability of NJTL both locally and nationally.

HISTORY

This award was informed by NJTL’s 40th anniversary where the USTA Diversity department awarded the three founders with the inaugural USTA Breaking the Barriers Award.  

 

YEARBOOK DESCRIPTION

The NJTL Founders' Service Award was established to honor an individual who has promoted the principles of Arthur Ashe and who has made an outstanding contribution to the development and/or sustainability of NJTL both locally and nationally.

Why is this award so special?  In 1969, the National Junior Tennis and Learning network was founded by Arthur Ashe, Charlie Pasarell and Sheridan Snyder, to develop the character of young people through tennis and education. In 2019, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of NJTL.  Lenny and Arthur were best friends and shared a lifetime of memories.  Lenny founded One Love Tennis to continue Arthur's vision of a program that would change people's lives, one at a time.  This award is more personal to Coach Lenny than any other award.

Watch the USTA Introductory video played before Coach Lenny's award was presented.  Great job, USTA!
 

(Video may be muted, unmute and turn on volume to hear)

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YEAR  RECIPIENT

 

2010  Barbara Wynne

2011  David N. Dinkins

2012  Not presented

2013  Skip Hartman

2014  Christine S. Beck

2015  Malivai Washington

2016  Cora Masters Barry

2017   Barbara Wynne

2018   Bert Cole

2019   Lenny Simpson

View Lenny's acceptance speech of the 2019 USTA NJTL Founder's Service Award

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One Love is honored to receive two USTA 2018 Educational Merit Awards from both the USTA NC and USTA Southern (9 state region) for excellence in educational programming.  The One Love Academic Enrichment program led by veteran educator, Cindy Ducharme, uses the USTA ACE Curriculum and focuses on the three "R's".  Outside the classroom, One Love educates kids about Wilmington tennis history (Althea Gibson, Dr. Hubert Eaton and Arthur Ashe are just a few of the names that are included).  Trips to the Fed Cup and US Open are educational opportunities beyond description.  One Love has over 50 volunteers that deserve credit for these awards due to their commitment to the kids they mentor on a 1:1 basis. 

 

One Love now has awards for Tennis Instruction (2017 NJTL Chapter of the Year), Education (2018 Educational Merit Awards x2) and Tennis Advocacy with the 2017 "Spirit Of The Game" award and 2019 NJTL Founder's Service Award

One Love is certainly doing something right because One Love Tennis was selected as the 2017 USTA North Carolina NJTL Chapter of the Year award winner for its contributions to the community and the sport of tennis. 

 

One Love Tennis  was honored during an Awards Luncheon at USTA North Carolina’s annual Tennis Weekend at the Pinehurst Resort on Saturday,

February 3, 2017. 

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Lenny accepts the 2017 USTA Southern Merilyn Sherman "Spirit Of The Game" Award

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One Love was honored with the "Service Above Self" Award presented by D.A. Ben David at a ceremony at Lumina Theater on the UNCW campus October 7th, 2019

Pictured Above:
D.A. Ben David & Lenny Simpson

Below:
Ben David speaks to the crowd
inside Lumina Theater

Pictured Below (L-R):
Lenny, Mike Ashcraft,
Bertha Todd & Judy Girard

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Pictured Above:
One Love & GLOW are honored

Below:
Coach Lenny with some young
One Love kids who attended

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