2010: Klahaya is Counterculture

It hits me each time I enter the Klahaya facility. There is something different about this place. The culture is different than any other club/resort that I have been involved with. As I walk back to the tennis courts, nestled among giant trees, it strikes me… Klahaya is counterculture! Located in a large metropolis of activity is an oasis called Klahaya Swim and Tennis Club.

A place for kids to be kids. For families to get out of the trappings of a media driven society where the research shows that an average family watches 151 hours of television a month and where young students (ages 10-18) are held captive by electronics (cell phones, iPods, iTouches, etc) for a total of 8 hours a day, rather than be outside and engage in wholesome, timeless activities. Klahaya is a place of exercise, of outside games, of character development, of new life lessons. As someone mentioned to me last year, “I wish there were more places like Klahaya to help raise my kids.”

On the tennis courts this season, our experienced coaches (Peter and Tristan Reni and myself) are countercultural. We look at each child as a person not an accident. We look at each player that steps on the courts as a person of value. We desire our tennis players to grow as much as people as tennis players. This is countercultural and over the many years of being involved in this haven called Klahaya, it is what people desire and want from our program. This summer we will continually offer lessons for all ages and abilities, Cardio tennis for adults, Monday night tennis socials, tennis team competition,  an intra-squad team tennis league,  July 4th Family Doubles Social, and more.