Tennessee Tech News Release
COOKEVILLE, Tenn. - When it comes to finding ways to make sports accessible and welcoming for individuals with disabilities, some might find the task daunting — but Tennessee Tech University alumna Melinda Mott Leftwich said, “Game on.”
The 1991 Tech graduate is the founder and executive director of Game On Accessible Tennis, a nonprofit offering free tennis programming to children and adults of all disabilities and skill levels.
The organization served more than three dozen athletes in 2024 alone and is preparing for its first major tournament in August. Billed as the Golden Parrot Summer Slam, the competition is believed to be the first adaptive tennis tournament in the state.
Leftwich says her passion for building connection and community on the court stems from her days on Tech’s campus more than three decades earlier.
“I took a tennis class at Tech when I was a student,” she recalled. “I was not very successful, but I had a lot of fun!”
Leftwich earned a degree from Tech in child development. She credits her classes and instructors for instilling in her an understanding of the importance of accessibility for all.
“Child development is closely related to special education insofar as you’re looking at the whole child,” she explained. “You’re looking at developmental milestones and how you meet someone where they are.”
She also worked in the university’s Child Development Lab, an on-campus preschool that doubles as a hands-on learning center for university students, and recalls the program being ahead of its time in serving children with special needs.
“It was an inclusive preschool,” Leftwich said. “All of the children served by the program who had disabilities were incorporated into everything we were doing.”
Leftwich additionally volunteered as a student orientation leader and remembers a pivotal moment when participants were asked to take the Myers-Briggs personality assessment.
“You saw the individual strengths of people and how you need everyone to be different to come up with the best ideas and the strongest organizations,” she said. “Somehow that always resonated with me.”
That idea resurfaced years later when, in her mid-40s, Leftwich followed her late mother’s encouragement and joined an adult tennis clinic. She had been out of practice since college but quickly rediscovered her love of the game. Not everyone was eager to welcome her, though.
“It was hard to break into the tennis community, to be honest,” she admitted. “I never lost that sense of what it feels like to not be included, and it made me want to include everyone.”
With that goal in mind, Leftwich began volunteering in the local tennis association, coaching at Algood Middle School and serving on various outreach committees within the United States Tennis Association. She even earned a PTR Level One coaching certification.
In 2019, she launched Cookeville Adaptive Tennis, a forerunner to Game On, with the help of Cookeville High School tennis coach Brian Rohr. The project grew steadily, and during a leadership change in 2021, her alma mater was there to support her. Recently retired head tennis coach Kenny Doyle and his men’s team contributed countless volunteer hours teaching athletes and offered the program free use of Tech's courts.
“I always tell Kenny, he and his awesome players kept the program going,” Leftwich said.
When Leftwich was ready to rebrand and expand in 2024, Tech’s Center for Rural Innovation provided free graphic design, website development and branding support. Leftwich praised the Tech students’ work on behalf of her growing nonprofit.
“I cannot say enough good things about every interaction,” she said. “It makes a huge difference, having branding that all works together to help promote your vision.”
Today, that vision includes bold aspirations for the future.
“I’m hoping we will expand across the region to have other satellite locations and new coaches, because there is a demand for programs for people with disabilities — especially those who age out of the school system,” Leftwich said. “We plan to add wheelchair tennis, and hopefully para-standing tennis. A big dream would be that someday we’ll have our own tennis courts.”
While she launched Game On to support and mentor others who may feel overlooked, Leftwich says her athletes have taught her plenty, too.
“I have learned that attitude and determination are stronger than any disability,” she said. “Everybody is looking for ways to connect, stay active, have fun and make friends. We can do all of that on the tennis court!”
