Inductee: Arthur Ashe

Our next inductee is one who, unfortunately, I narrowly missed in my lifetime. I instead have learned of this man through stories of his passion, bravery, service, and outstanding ability on the tennis court.

Arthur Ashe won three Grand Slam titles in his career. He was selected to the Davis Cup team and won the singles title at Wimbledon, the US Open, and the Australian Open. But, amazingly, he did so in the face of adversity.

Arthur Ashe was the first black man to accomplish these feats. But, he started leaving his mark on this world far before that.

When he was younger, he had to break down the barriers of segregation just because he was too good at tennis. He constantly needed new opponents and he needed to be trained according to his outstanding talent.

This carried on through college. Then, upon graduating, Arthur enlisted in the U.S. Army. He served for two years and reached the rank of second lieutenant. Please take a moment to thank him for his service.

After serving, Arthur co-founded the National Junior Tennis League with fellow tennis players, Charlie Pasarelli and Sheridan Snyder. The program was created to give children, who may not be as fortunate as others, the opportunity to embrace tennis. They encouraged the fun of the sport, but also wanted to foster discipline and attention to academics.

This is the first of many programs of its kind. But through each program, Ashe would take tennis and use it to teach life skill, usually to the younger generation.

When Ashe retired from tennis, he didn’t slow down in his community. He was actively involved in movements against the South African apartheid regime.

Amid contracting HIV from a blood transfusion, Arthur co-founded Artists and Athletes Against Apartheid with Harry Belafonte. They used this organization to raise awareness and lobby for the anti-apartheid movement.

Ashe was so dedicated to the cause, he was even arrested outside the South African embassy during an anti-apartheid protest.

Meanwhile, he continued to actively fight for other causes he believed in. In the 1980’s, Ashe founded the Safe Passage Foundation, ABC Cities Tennis Program and the Athlete-Career Connection. He actively joined tennis and the community for wonderful causes.

Late in his life, in 1991, Ashe took his second trip to South Africa to see the change he had created. It’s so beautiful that he got to see some of what he’d worked for come to fruition.

            Finally, when he contracted AIDS, he took the horrible situation and found ways to help others. In his memoir he wrote, “"I do not like being the personification of a problem, much less a problem involving a killer disease, but I know I must seize these opportunities to spread the word.” Wow.

            He created the Arthur Ashe Foundation for the Defeat of AIDS, which raised money for research, with the end goal of completely eradicating the disease.

            Amazingly, during his battle with AIDS, he also continued to fight for the other causes he was passionate about, too. He was even arrested again protesting for Haitian refugees outside of the White House!

            All in all, these words are not enough to see who he was as a person. This man lived a short life, just 49 years. But he did more with 49 years than most would do with 490. He made a global impact and bettered our world. He took tennis and used it as a tool to teach others to embrace these values.

            Arthur Ashe dominated the tennis world, there is no question. But, it was his outstanding drive to actually change the world that makes me feel honored and humbled to say: Arthur Ashe, welcome to the Good Guy Hall of Fame!!