ACEing Autism - Northville

This morning dawned with some thunder and scattered showers, yet despite the wet courts, our players pushed out the dreariness to have just as much fun as on sunny days! Early bird Erin even helped sweep the courts dry upon arrival. And, after weeks of playing from the net, Max tried receiving balls from the service line for the first time today. Meanwhile, AJ introduced his self-designed game of Tennis Tag to his volunteer; they played 40 rounds today but his eventual goal is a whopping 250! Our last clinic of the summer season is coming up, so join us next week as we wrap up our tennis journey together 🥹🥳🎾 ACEing Autism

Halfway through the summer season, and everyone's back into the routine of things. On one court, we've got Andrew and Jairaj mixing it up with both forehands and backhands; on another court, we see Amelia and Erin channeling their energy to blast the tennis balls literally out of the park; and on still another two courts, we have AJ battling it out with his volunteer and Cameron graduating to even self-serves. And, of course, we can't forget our youngest participants: Max hitting continuous volleys and some groundstrokes and Sammy hitting consecutive shots off the tee stand really have us impressed! Only a couple weeks left, but we're having so much fun! 😊🎾 ACEing Autism

Though the weather cooled down a bit, the air still buzzed with excitement for the second clinic of our summer season! We had a new face join us this time: Sammy was a ball of energy and quickly became an expert at rolling tennis balls back and forth with volunteers. Familiar faces also played impressively: Jairaj and AJ beat their own personal records during rallies of over 30 back-and-forth hits, while Andrew and Erin challenged each other to hit very controlled and clean shots with both their forehands and backhands. And, Max even graduated from the mini-net to hit wonderful volleys from the official court nets. We wonder what new feats of achievement the next weeks will bring us 🤯🙌🏼🎾 ACEing Autism

Kicking off our Northville ACEing Autism summer season with a beautiful sunny (though hot) day! Even with a smaller group, it felt cozier, especially with all the returning, familiar faces. And, of course, we had to pull out our beloved game of "Red Light Green Light", alongside a new activity: "Freeze Tag"! Looking forward to the next few weeks of tennis and fun 😊🎾

Aaaaand that wraps up our spring 2024 ACEing Autism session! Thank you so much to all the athletes, families, and volunteers for your never-ending dedication and enthusiasm for our program! We've seen tremendous growth among all our participants and can't wait to see you all again for our summer program in August! Happy Father's Day, and enjoy your summer!! 🎾😎☀️ ACEing Autism

Fourth week in, and we're already seeing so much improvement in tennis skill and socialization from the first clinic of the season! From Jairaj hitting numerous rallies to Andrew and Brennan mastering the low-to-high forehand swing for a beautiful arc of a shot to Amelia learning to control her power to Anthony graduating from kicking to hitting balls off the tee stand, all our athletes deserve shout-outs for their amazing growth. Can't wait to celebrate it all next week at our final clinic and awards ceremony!! 🤩🥳🎾

The gloomy day didn't dampen any spirits at all as everyone crowded onto the courts for more volley and forehand practices! Of course, our classic games made their appearance, but so did a new twist on "Fruit Salad"... does anyone know how to play "Animal Salad"?? 🤭🎾🐕 ACEing Autism

Even with the long Memorial Day weekend, the turnout at this week's Northville ACEing Autism session was fantastic! Lots of new faces, both athlete and volunteer, were seen on the courts to enjoy the sun and some tennis fun. And, to the delight of all, we brought back the fan-favorite game of "Lava Ball"! ☄️🎾🤩 ACEing Autism

Aaaaand we're back!! Under a clear blue sky, Northville ACEing Autism athletes and volunteers flooded back onto the courts for the first session of the summer! With lots of familiar faces and a few new ones, friendships formed quickly, and everyone fell into easy conversation and fun with some of our signature games like "Fruit Salad" and "Duck, Duck, Goose". Looking forward to the rest of the summer! 🎾🤩☀️

Northville ACEing Autism's last clinic of the summer 2023 season ended on another high note with gorgeous weather and a bright sun smiling down on everyone and the courts. After the usual tennis practice and coordination drills, participants, volunteers, and family members gathered together for the awards ceremony to celebrate the amazing achievements of our kids while also enjoying ice cream and popsicles. The Paper Plate Awards featured the following: Big Shot, Record Breaker, Next Roger Federer, Uplifter, Speedster, Mini Warrior, Court Domination, Ready For It, Energizer Bunny, and Cheerleader. Huge thank you to all the families for their constant support!! Huge thank you to all the volunteers for their dedication!! See you all next spring 🎾🤩🎉

With the blue cloudless sky overhead, Northville ACEing Autism's second-to-last session began amid smiles and laughter. This time, volunteers incorporated new coordination activities so that the kids were not just beasts on the courts with their racquets, but also beasts off the courts with their hand-eye coordination. Can't wait to see what the last session will be like to round off another incredible season! 👏🎾😆

We had yet another successful and laughter-filled clinic this bright summer morning, with a couple new faces joining in the fun. As always, the kids were beasts on the courts, swinging their racquets and hitting powerful shots. But, their coordination prowess was also displayed during ball pick-ups, when several proudly balanced over 10 balls on their racquets! 🎾🤩💪

The sun shone brightly down on all the volunteers and participants for the first official clinic of our Northville ACEing Autism summer season! After a quick training session at the start where the volunteers brushed up on teaching skills, the kids began arriving, eager to see familiar faces and have fun together on the courts. Can't wait for the rest of the sessions! 🎾🤩🌤

The overcast sky of today's final clinic of Northville ACEing Autism's spring/summer 2023 season greatly contrasted with the merriment and cheer as everyone got their last shots and last high-fives to each other in! We ended with our paper plate award ceremony tradition, with awards like "the Big Shot", "the Moodmaker", and "the Pocket Prankster", to capture the uniqueness of each participant. And afterwards, popsicles of all flavors went around, as we all enjoyed some extra sweetness to this bittersweet day. Thank you so much to all the participants for coming out of their comfort zones to try something new and/or reconnect with old friends! Thank you so much to all the volunteers for taking time out of their schedules to help out as well! We really couldn't have done it without either party 😊 Looking forward to what next season might bring~ 🎾🏆🍧 ACEing Autism

Though slightly chillier than previous weeks, the mood at this week's ACEing Autism clinic was just as warm and merry as before! We focused more on social interactions this time, with participants stretching together, collaborating during games like "Red Light, Green Light" and "Fruit Salad", and even asking for piggyback rides from their volunteers. Great second-to-last clinic!! Anyone excited for next week's sweet surprise?? 👀😝🎾

Third session down, and two more to go! It was another beautifully sunny and warm Sunday that made everyone feel comfortable in their ACEing Autism tees. Already, we could see massive improvements in each participant's swings and coordination - can't wait to see how they play at the end of this season! 🎾🤩

What a beautiful, sunny morning that greeted all the volunteers and participants for the second clinic of Northville's spring session! Everyone arrived bright and early to donuts and coffee for a brief training by the lovely Regional Directors Vasavi and Emma, after which volunteer/participant pairs broke off to their respective courts. Laughter and shouts rang through the air as everyone got their swings in!! 🎾🤩🍩

Yet another ACEing Autism clinic coincided with a beautifully sunny Mother's Day! We kicked off the spring '23 program with some of our usual favorites, from Fruit Salad volley games to doubles rallying to group Lava Ball! Can't wait for what the next weeks will hold as summer comes rolling around the corner 🎾🌤😆

The second clinic of Northville ACEing Autism's summer 2022 program almost didn't get to happen because of rainy forecasted weather. Fortunately, though, the sun seemed to realize that everyone needed the hour of fun so it decided to show up, allowing us to run through our regular volley drills and games and new forehand/backhand practices. In the end, we were able to play a few rounds of some highly-requested group games, such as "Red Light Green Light", "Freeze Tag", and "Lava Ball"! Thank you, Mr. Sun, for the clear weather and for letting us enjoy tennis and our friends' company! 🌞🎾

On a hot and humid summer morning, Northville ACEing Autism held the long-awaited first clinic of our summer 2022 season! With many returning participants, a couple new ones, and a great volunteer turnout, fast new friendships were created in the midst of tennis fun. Along with our classic volley and group games of "Fruit Salad" and "Duck Duck Goose", we also introduced "Sharks and Minnows" which quickly became a popular activity that we will definitely run again in future weeks. Can't wait for the rest of our season!! 😁🎾

…everyone received a medal and everyone received a paper plate award because EVERYONE showed tremendous growth, both as tennis players and as friends. It’s hard to believe that just six weeks ago, we didn’t know each other at all and now, we’re laughing, talking, and having bunches of fun. Hope to see everyone in the summer season in just a couple months 😄☀️🎾

Today was our very last clinic of Northville ACEing Autism’s spring season!! We played all our classic games but with secret excitement in anticipation for the awards ceremony… 🎾😁

New location, what's this? Despite the change in scenery, we ran through our routine drills and old-time favorite games with as much excitement as at previous clinics. Looking forward to next week's surprise... 😉👀🎾

With the bright blue sky and sun shining down on us, we launched into our fourth clinic of Northville ACEing Autism! Though it was Memorial Day Weekend, lots of kids still showed up for some tennis fun with our classic games and the new fan-favorite of "Lava Ball". 😜🎾

Clinic #3! We're already halfway done with the spring session of Northville ACEing Autism! Though the day was unseasonably overcast and chilly, spirits weren't dampened as we enjoyed classic games like "Fruit Salad", "Crocodile", "Red Light Green Light", and "Duck Duck Goose", as well as new activities, like a relay race. What fun awaits us next week? 😁🎾