Rally for Her: Rennae Stubbs Inspires Next Generation of Leaders
TeamFAME and the International Tennis Hall of Fame hosted "Rally for Her: From Teammate to Leader" empowerment event on Monday, November 17. This high-impact mentorship experience for young women featured six-time major champion and renowned commentator Rennae Stubbs. The program successfully gathered TeamFAME middle and high school student-athletes, along with members of the Salve Regina University women’s tennis team, for an afternoon dedicated to growth, leadership and inspiration.
This impactful event was supported by a $5,000 Gainbridge® Assists Powered by Parity grant awarded to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. This grant program, in collaboration with Gainbridge®, Parity, and the Women’s Sports Foundation®, supports girls and women through sports and education. The Newport event is part of a broader national initiative that awarded $222,000 to 32 organizations across 21 states to advance opportunities for girls and women through sports.
Lessons in Resilience and Positivity
In partnership with The Person First, the event was designed to expand leadership, confidence, and mentorship through sport. The afternoon kicked off on the indoor courts with an hour of on-court tennis, skill-building, and team exercises, where attendees received interactive coaching from Rennae. The group then moved to TeamFAME headquarters at the Chris Evert Learning Center for the core leadership segment.
During intimate group breakouts and a candid Q&A session, Stubbs shared powerful storytelling from her career, discussing her beginnings in Australia, the importance of discipline, and her enduring love for the game. A key theme was resilience, with Stubbs emphasizing that letting go of negative self-talk and focusing on positivity allowed her to perform at her best, even after missing a crucial shot. Through personal stories from her career, Rennae stressed the importance of continually looking forward, with a positive mindset often making the difference between winning and losing.
Rennae highlighted a curiosity to be better as a key aspect of greatness and leadership. To illustrate this point, she mentioned working as Serena Williams’ coach during the final US Open, noting that even one of the greatest players of all time was still curious about wanting to improve.
“Because I let go of the negative, I was able to perform at my best,” commented Stubbs during the Q&A. “Now, I might not have won the match, but I would have been able to deliver myself in the future, because, again, I gave myself a 100 percent chance to try and win the match, because I was good to myself.”
The Importance of Women Supporting Women
The accomplished commentator also delivered a strong message about the importance of women supporting one another. She applauded the supportive environment with TeamFAME and their Salve Regina mentors, and encouraged the young women, calling them the leaders of the next generation, to support one another and not tear each other down.
To cap off the inspiring afternoon, the attendees had the opportunity to hear from one of Rennae’s own heroes, Hall of Famer Billie Jean King, in a personalized video message.
"I really want to thank my friends at Gainbridge for helping bring you together with Rennae. I'm proud to be associated with Gainbridge because they're doing the right things and supporting girls and women at the grassroots level with funding for events just like this.
"Tennis is the healthiest sport in the world, and sports teach you life lessons. One thing you have discussed today is mentors and mentoring. I have had several mentors in my career and life. Mentors can really help you stay in the game and get you closer to your goals. I hope you'll take what you've learned today on and off the court and use it to make things better for you, your family, friends, your community."
