SALISBURY – Did you play tennis for Livingstone College? Then this is not only homecoming week, but a celebration of 50 years of tennis at Blue Bear Nation.

Livingstone will hold a 50-year tennis reunion on Saturday, Nov. 2, at 1 p.m. at the tennis court on campus. All former members and tennis supporters are invited to attend free of charge.

“The reunion is an opportunity to acknowledge past tennis team members, make presentations to benefactors and talk about plans to build our women’s tennis program,” said Gwen Jackson, head coach of Livingstone women’s tennis.

Jackson is the first female head coach of the college’s women’s tennis program, having started in 2010. She played competitively herself from 2002 through 2008 in the ALTA League in Atlanta, Ga.

Livingstone was once a force to be reckoned with in the game of tennis. In 1990, the men’s team won the CIAA tennis championship. Prior to that, Livingstone captured the CIAA Southern Division titles in 1973, 1975, 1976, 1978 and 1980-82.

The inaugural All Women’s Team for CIAA Conference was formed in 2003, coached by Joseph K. Enoch and assistant coach Pierre Spivey. Prior to that, two women, Pam Hurt and Natalie Campbell, joined the Livingstone men’s team in 1975.

After the reunion, Abdul Idi, a former Livingstone tennis player, will conduct a tennis clinic for HOLLA! youth tennis team of Morven, N.C. Idi is a tennis professional at Rivers Strand Golf and Country Club in Bradenton, Fla., and was a member of the only championship tennis team at Livingstone.

Among special guests at the reunion will be Roxanne Aaron, president of the American Tennis Association, the nation’s first Black Tennis Association that organized when black players could not compete in the USTA.

For more information, call Gwen Jackson at (704) 213-8750.

About Livingstone College

Livingstone College is a private historically black college that is secured by a strong commitment to quality instruction, academic excellence and student success. Through a Christian-based environment suitable for holistic learning, Livingstone provides excellent business, liberal arts, STEAM, teacher education and workforce development programs for students from all ethnic backgrounds designed to promote lifelong learning, and to develop student potential for leadership and service to a global community. For more information, visit www.livingstone.edu.