Rising Stars: Meet Leslie Banks

Today we’d like to introduce you to Leslie Banks.

Hi Leslie; it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.

My story really revolves around 2 things: tennis and family.

I’ve been playing tennis since I was 3. It was a family affair; my older sister, younger brother, and I grew up in rural Ohio and were taught tennis by my parents, who learned from a book. We carried baskets of balls on a little red wagon to the park courts in our neighborhood. From ages 8 to 18, my parents drove us around Ohio and the Midwest to compete in junior tournaments, singles and doubles. I earned my path to State all 4 years of high school tennis, and a full scholarship for tennis to play for a Division-I college at Youngstown State University. My senior year I transferred to the University of Idaho where I played tennis and lived with my younger brother in a shared apartment not far from campus.  From there I graduated with my BA in History, and returned to Ohio. My parents are strong academics and I was driven to achieve more than a Bachelors so I achieved my Masters in History at Kent State University.  I continued to coach tennis at a nearby club and lived close to my older brother so was able to babysit for my young niece and nephew.

After Grad school I moved to Houston with my sister and lived there for 13 years. It was faster and easier to find a job coaching tennis than go through multiple interviews with my new Master’s degree. My resume of coaching tennis landed me a job at Club Westside, where I continued to grow my skills in coaching young children to adults at various levels of play. One day, I was recruited to become the Junior Program Director at Lakeside Country Club which was a huge leap forward for my career. He challenged me to learn new skills beyond on-court coaching.

In 2019 I moved to the Valley with my husband. I began coaching in public and private Scottsdale venues. The move allowed me to see what other career options I could try besides tennis. I found a new mentor, who consulted for nonprofit organizations, and helped him organize a tennis event benefiting Open Hearts, a large nonprofit in the Valley. We helped raise $100K for the organization. Through him I was asked to direct a nonprofit summer tennis camp for the summer of 2020. I was undeterred by COVID and successfully ran a small camp for high school students from underserved communities. The camp and the students became my passion. I started my nonprofit at the beginning of 2021. Since then, we have positively impacted over 200 students within the Phoenix Union High School District, its feeder schools, and other qualified schools. We hosted this year’s summer camp at 2 locations simultaneously; we are partnered with PXU and Academia del Pueblo. We were featured on AZFamily Channel 3 and FOX10Phoenix.

Because of my work, I have been recognized by the USPTA (United States Professional Tennis Association) locally and nationally. I have won the National “Star” Award for working with underserved communities and growing the game of tennis. I appeared on a panel discussing the State of Tennis for the National USTA (United States Tennis Association) Conference. I was a guest on the podcast: @atthenetpodcast on July 19th. Serve the Future would not have been created if not for my passion for tennis or the support from my family.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?

I’ve lived in several geographically different places throughout my life, each representing different life stages. In each, I found myself closer to what my purpose is but couldn’t grasp it exactly.

After earning my BA & MA, I taught tennis in Houston but didn’t have a mentor to guide me along a path to a destination.  I believe finding a mentor at each stage in your career and life is so important to finding purpose. I did not find a mentor until I was in my late 30s. Looking back, it was a struggle I wasn’t aware of but going through all the same.

When my husband and I moved to Phoenix in 2019, it gave me the opportunity to figure out what I was passionate about. I knew that I loved coaching tennis and mentoring. We chose not to have children but I still had that urge to be a change-maker for youth. That purpose drove me to found Serve the Future.  To make this successful I had many obstacles to overcome: how to build a nonprofit from scratch; how to create trusting relationships with communities that don’t know you or why you are coaching them at no cost. Not to mention, legally creating a nonprofit, building a website, fundraising, marketing, and event creation for funding purposes.

Finding what you are passionate about and can make a living at is indeed a struggle, but so fulfilling because of those obstacles. It is a struggle to find and build a similar minded community from all walks of life. I am able to combine my passions and share them to become a change-maker.

Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?

I’m excited to share that the SW USTA Section nominated me and I was selected by the National USTA Committee to attend the premier “Champions of Equality” Event held at the US Open Tournament (1 of 4 Grand Slams) on September 7th in NYC. It is truly an honor. I will meet Billie Jean King and be part of an equality-focused panel discussion. I was selected because I “embody someone who ignites change, with an eye toward the next generation.”

As for my work, my focus is to improve the lives of my students. I have consciously created my life so that I interact with all socio-economic demographics. I coach at Phoenix Country Club, in the surrounding community, and run the nonprofit for those students who could not afford to play this sport. This fluidity allows me to raise awareness of the dire needs of my nonprofit students to those who have means. I’m able to share clothing donations, racquets, shoes, etc. My students at PCC and my friends at area clubs feel connected to a greater cause and are able to directly give back. My nonprofit students are the recipients and are already feeling the wealth in mind and body as well as the physical donations.

On September 30th, Serve the Future is holding our annual tennis Event: The Triples Tournament to benefit the nonprofit. It’s a fun event that isn’t traditional. We will have a DJ, Raffle Prizes, Drink and Taco Bar. You can sign up on the website.
I’m also working on building out the organization by hiring staff to run programming. Look for Serve the Future to be coming near you! We are always happy to receive donations and sponsorships.

We’d love to hear about your fond memories from growing up.
Great question! I don’t have a particular one that comes to mind. My younger brother, older sister, and I are close in age and spent a lot of time together as adolescents and then when I lived with each of them. My brother and I had 5am workouts for the tennis team at the University of Idaho. I would jump out of bed and walk from our apartment to campus, and my brother would follow about 10 min later. He would always find different spots along the route to jump out of the dark and scare the living daylights out of me. The joy of brothers and making a game out of anything.

Contact Info:

• Website: servethefuture.org
• Instagram: @servethefutureaz
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lbanks16
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leslie-banks-uspta-ppr-33080b41/

Image Credits
Lori Krenzen Photography, The other photos are mine.