Tennis to be Focal Point of Upcoming East Bay Musical Celebration Event to include local musicians and celebrated pastry chef in honor of the late Althea Gibson and author Alice Wilson-Fried
Tennis to be Focal Point of Upcoming East Bay Musical Celebration, 'The Sweet Sounds of Celebration' where the late Althea Gibson and local author Alice Wilson-Fried accomplishments and perseverance are honored. December 6, 1:00 - 3:00pm at Bleckinger's Pro Tennis Shop in El Cerrito.
(PRWEB) December 5, 2003
Oakland, Calif., December 3, 2003 – Althea Gibson, the late tennis champion who broke the color barrier to become the first African American to win a Wimbledon title in 1957 among other international titles it was announced today will be honored in an afternoon of fine food and music at Bleckinger’s Pro Tennis Shop in El Cerrito. Titled ‘The Sweet Sounds of Celebration’, the event, will be hosted by long time East Bay enthusiast and tennis pro shop owners, Chuck and Jewel Bleckinger, who will honor the accomplishments of Gibson’s professional career and personal perseverance. It is scheduled for Saturday, December 6, from 1:00 to 3:00 pm.
Commenting on this eclectic event, Bleckinger said, “Althea Gibson’s accomplishments were celebratory for anyone who enjoys playing or watching tennis, yet her personal journey of becoming a highly competitive and pro circuit caliber tennis athlete in the 1950s, must have been rife with barriers and frustration. Our event this Saturday is simply our way, the East Bay tennis community’s way, of honoring her accomplishments despite the struggles she must have endured throughout her tennis career.”
While Bleckinger’s celebration event will focus largely on the Althea Gibson’s illustrious career, it will equally celebrate the burgeoning publishing career of Alice Wilson-Fried, whose book, “Menopause, Sisterhood and Tennis,” invites readers to take an insightful, often humorous but also staid, journey with her from the Jim Crow-era south of her childhood where tennis was off limits to African Americans, to Oakland where she migrated later in life and discovered tennis as a means to ward off menopause. Wilson-Fried also credits the sport for improving her overall health, discovering a newfound competitive fire and for bringing sheer enjoyment to the second half of her life.
Wilson-Fried, who earlier this year was asked by the local United States Tennis Association chapter to share her story and experiences to the tennis community both in the East Bay and at the 2003 US Open, has broken her own color barrier by becoming the first African American author to broach the topic of menopause.
“While these two very exceptional women lead very different lives, at entirely different eras. There is one thing they both shared, a love for life and tennis and the ability to move through life with dignity, perseverance and style,” Bleckinger said. “Our celebratory event promises to be something highly unique-yet very special,” she added.
