When Tennis SA’s Rural Volunteer Achievement Award recipient, Julie Polkinghorne, began her tennis career in Port Lincoln, she couldn’t have imagined her involvement would span across over 40 years of service to the sport. Starting off as a tennis player, Polkinghorne progressed through to volunteering at committee level in roles that she has now held for over 20 years.
“When I started as a Team Captain, I soon realised that if you haven’t got people putting their hands up to help out with getting players together to play each week, then you haven’t got a competition,” said Polkinghorne.
“For a lot of people, it’s their only social outing for the week. Especially in regional areas, it’s just so important to have sports for our youth and also for older people to be able to have a social outlet as well.”
When asked about a highlight from throughout her time as a volunteer, Polkinghorne immediately turned to facility projects that have seen the venue become one of the best regional facilities in the state.
“Getting our facilities up to scratch has been a highlight. Our facilities were very rundown and I’m pretty proud that in the time that I’ve been involved, we’ve had about $1.4 million spent on our venue to bring it up to standard,” she explained.
“We really had to work with our council to figure out how we were going to fix our facilities and how we were going to move forward. Council allocated some funds, but we had to come up with the money to match those funds through grant applications, fundraising and getting more sponsors on board. It takes a lot of work to be raising that sort of money, but I am really proud of that.”
With countless hours spent volunteering and helping others, Polkinghorne was quick to mention the friendships she has made along the way.
“For me personally, it’s the friendships I have made volunteering. Not only in our region, but all over the state. You certainly make a connection because you meet up with other people who are doing exactly the same thing at their club, and that is giving other people the opportunity to play our sport.
“I wouldn’t have been doing it for so long if I didn’t get such a buzz out of it, especially with our junior kids watching them progress and seeing their journeys. When you’re a big part of that, it’s really rewarding to know that you’ve made a bit of a difference in some young people’s lives.”
While volunteering makes for a busy lifestyle, Polkinghorne’s passion for making a difference in the community is as strong as ever.
“Trying to find that work/life balance is a challenge sometimes, especially when the tennis season is in full swing!
“Seeing the difference we’ve made, not only myself but my family, to our community is what keeps me motivated. While I’m still motivated and still passionate about what I do, I’ll continue on. Once that motivation goes away, I’ll step away and just play some tennis!”
Photo: Julie Polkinghorne (centre), pictured with social ladies doubles players Chris Cheriton and Pat Ramage
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