Atlanta resident Takanyi Garanganga striving to grow tennis in Africa

It’s been more than 35 years since Ronald Reagan stated, during his first inaugural address, “Those who say that we’re in a time when there are no heroes, they just don’t know where to look.” We discovered heroes in every state, starting with the determined 69-year-old who won a match at an ITF Pro Circuit event earlier this year in the Alabama town of Pelham, and culminating with the coach who has overcome multiple sclerosis to build a winning program at the University of Wyoming. Their compelling stories of courage, perseverance and achievement demonstrate that the message delivered by our 40th President rings as true today as it did then.

Growing up in Zimbabwe during the 1990s and early 2000s, Takanyi Garanganga watched as African tennis players made their mark on the Grand Slam scene.

But over the past few years, as the continent’s economy has suffered multiple setbacks, the level of tennis engagement and talent in Africa has substantially deteriorated.

“Tennis was something [that] everybody, socially, was kind of involved in, and there were a lot of tournaments back when I started,” said Garanganga, Zimbabwe’s top-ranked player. “But now, in the 2000s, you can count the number of tournaments they have in the palm of your hand. That’s kind of declined. It’s terrible.”

And in 2014, Garanganga took a step toward changing that. Along with his manager, Thabani Sithole, as well as Chido Munyati, Garanganga helped establish Serve 4 Africa, a non-profit organization that promotes social development through tennis.

As the ambassador for the foundation, Garanganga, who lives in Atlanta, assists with tennis programs and learning clinics throughout Africa.

Serve 4 Africa has also recently partnered with SOLINCO to launch the African Aces Junior Circuit, an unsanctioned series of monthly tournaments in Southern Africa. Entering a tournament costs children only $5 and allows them to win T-shirts and other prizes.

Through these efforts, the organization hopes to perform the type of outreach needed to draw disadvantaged children to the sport and increase awareness about the opportunities that come from playing.

“For us, we’re not a big team,” Sithole said. “We’re not a big staff and we’re not trying to pretend to be something we’re not. We’re just trying to do what we can. I think the main point is that we hope we can grow so that we can really maintain some real traction, and really impact the region the way we really want to.”