On a bright warm morning, May 11, 2019, local tennis players rallied around for a tennis tournament supporting a longtime charity. The 11th Annual SHORTSTOP Tennis Tournament sponsored by the Long Beach Bar Foundation, which operates a program for first-time juvenile offenders, was open to all local tennis players of all levels. LBBF is an adjunct of the Long Beach Bar Association and is self-sustaining. The local tennis players have, for several years, enthusiastically supported LBBF by holding annual tournaments at the Seal Beach Tennis Club. 2019's edition was one of the best ever. The Foundation filled the open and intermediate classes for all competition on the outstanding Courts at SBTC. Competition on the courts moved along briskly and and finished up in good time for lunch courtesy of board member Marty Eisenberg.
Executive Director Carolyn Bell oversaw the event and singled out Marty and his friend, LBBF Honorary Board Member Vern Schooley, for their efforts in organizing participation in the competition. The players and audience alike enjoyed the fast and fluid play, to go with beverages and lunch. After an intense competition amongst the teams was concluded, Ken Donnelly and Alex Garcia clinched the Open Division title while Darian Hong and Anthony Tran were named champions of the Intermediate Division through a playoff win over Robert Stone and Steve Fingerhut.
Bell recognized a number of different job participants for their special financial donations and support which, altogether, lead to an overall contribution of $3,585. Eisenberg added that while the overall revenue raised may have been modest, the enthusiasm and support and participation was outstanding and the funds raised appreciated and recognized as great importance to the SHORTSTOP program.
The Long Beach Bar Foundation is currently celebrating a quarter century of service to Helping Youth Stop Short of Crime in Long Beach, Signal Hill, Lakewood, Los Angeles, the Gateway Cities, the South Bay Region and other neighboring communities with cooperation from the Long Beach Unified School District, the Long Beach Police Department, local law enforcement agencies and its expansive network of community volunteers and instructors. Through SHORTSTOP, LBBF offers a continuum of mentoring and counseling programs that enables at-risk youth to gain important self-management and life skills they will need to build and foster successful futures.
LBBF can be found online at www.longbeachbarfoundation.org. Their Twitter handle is @stoppingshort and they can be found on Facebook under @lbbarfoundation and as @longbeachbarfoundation on Instagram.