Lady Jacket Tennis making a difference in the community
Nick Williams, Assistant SID

DEFIANCE, Ohio—The Defiance College Women’s Tennis Team has been living up to he school's motto of "Make a Difference" by spending time volunteering at a local Defiance elementary school to help teach third-grade children about the importance of the subjects they are learning in reaching their long-term goals.

Through the Junior Achievement program, the girls volunteered at the Slocum Elementary School, working with the third grade class. Assisting the teacher with educating the children on different material such as math, social studies, and grammar, the girls helped the students understand why the subjects have relevance in real-life settings and to their future success. The players that took part of the program were Amanda Auzins, Emily Meyer, Jessica Gullette, Casie Burkhart, Erin Wendt, and Vanessa Vendetta.

DC freshman Casie Burkhart gave an example of some of the work that the team does with the children.

"We did a checking account and had the students have their own checking account, checks, atm card, and found out how to balance a checkbook and write a deposit slip," Burkhart said.

Burkhart felt that working with the children had a positive impact on them.

"I think it will help the students experience things they will need to know when they are in high school, Burkhart said.

DC freshman Jessica Gullette echoed the sentiment, saying that she felt that their presence helped the children learn something from the experience.

"They were very easy teach and are so good and willing to learn. It was also nice to see how happy they were to see us when we came each day," Gullette said.

For more information on the Junior Achievement program, visit www.ja.org.