On December 7, 2020, USTA North Carolina announced that the Raleigh Tennis Association's Executive Director, Julie Dick, is the recipient of the 2020 Educational Merit Award given by Buster & Karen Brown.
The Educational Merit Award recognizes an individual who has developed an outstanding tennis initiative, which provides leadership and inspiration in junior programming for schools, colleges, parks and playgrounds and benefits the growth of tennis.
Heather White, Director of Government & Foundation Relations at the Boys & Girls Clubs serving Wake County, one of two people who nominated Julie for the award said, “Through Julie’s leadership, RTA advanced its partnership with Boys & Girls Clubs serving Wake County by offering tennis lessons for youth at five Club sites early this year. Julie’s creativity, initiative, and leadership is helping to grow the game of tennis in NC. We’re grateful for the partnership between RTA and Boys & Girls Clubs.”
The RTA Board and Staff are thrilled to have Julie leading the RTA and want to congratulate her on an incredible honor. The Raleigh tennis community has seen tremendous growth under Julie's leadership and during the past year under extraordinary circumstances created by the pandemic, her efforts to support the community have been unparalleled, exemplifying Julie as the “Heart & Soul”of the RTA.
"Julie is a wonderful and kind person with a big heart for community. She works tirelessly to provide opportunities for youth. This inspires Julie to create, develop, and implement tennis initiatives that will positively impact young lives so that they can find greatness within themselves both on and off the court. As a volunteer, I am inspired by her passion to promote the benefits of tennis but most importantly her dedication to make a lifetime impact through her love of tennis," said Cindy Craft, RTA volunteer and tennis mom, who nominated Julie for the award along with Heather White.
Thank you, Julie, for all that you do for the RTA and the Raleigh tennis community.