ELMS Tennis Club (ETC) is a co-ed recreational tennis club founded in October 2022 by creative entrepreneur Essence Smith. ETC’s mission is simple - diversify the sport and build community through Tennis. Throughout history, Tennis has proven to be an inaccessible sport for people of color due to its cost, non-inclusive culture, and many more barriers set in place. The goal for ETC is to allow people of all ages, demographics, and skill levels to have access to learn the fundamentals of Tennis in a fun and welcoming environment at no cost to them.

A long-term goal for ETC is to create an initiative that directly impacts Chicago communities by renovating unkept tennis courts in predominantly minority-populated areas, specifically the south and west side neighborhoods.

​

ETC programming includes monthly tennis 'Link-Up' events and tennis-focused social gatherings/experiences. To date, ETC has hosted 19 'Link-Up' events and 5+ tennis-focused events within the Chicagoland area totaling in 500+ attendees.

Key partners thus far include but are not limited to Wilson Sporting Goods, Midtown Athletic Club, Chicago Park District, CoCo 5, University of Chicago, USTA, ORS Hair Care and Evergreen Racquet and Fitness Club.