Debbie Swindoll: Oxford Tennis Instructor

Debbie Swindoll has been Tennis Director for the Oxford Park Commission since 1993. Swindoll, who was inducted two years ago into the Hall of Fame for the Mississippi Tennis Association and Mississippi State University, has gone from having about 15 youth participate that first summer to about 300 now—what she describes as a “very active tennis community.”

Children start as young as 3, but Swindoll doesn’t get them till they’re 7 or 8. The youth program goes up to 18, and OPC also has an adult program, though the majority of Swindoll’s time is spent with the children.

Working with children, Swindoll said she remembers to teach players what they need to know, but to also “keep it fun.”

Mike Young: Program Director, Oxford

After serving as Program Director for the Oxford Park Commission for the past two years, Mike Young is still as enthusiastic as ever. “I work at one of the best places in the world,” he said. “I have a great boss and great co-workers.”

Young’s responsibilities as Program Director are to oversee all of OPC’s instructional programs. In the current winter/spring session, 43 classes are going on, for a variety of ages.

Young is also working on starting a new Challenger League in Oxford, which is a sports program geared to mentally disabled 5 to 18-year-olds. There is a Challenger League for baseball and softball currently, but Young wants it to expand to other sports as well.