NEW YORK—On a cloudy night in Manhattan, no stars could be seen in the dark sky. Tourists searching for Polaris to find their way uptown were out of luck.
The stars were there, of course, but if you wanted to see one on this overcast evening, you needed to go inside, to Gotham Hall in Midtown. There, the recipient of the Harlem Junior Tennis & Education Program's Shining Star award, Chanda Rubin, beamed as she accepted the non-profit organization's annual honor.
"As a longtime supporter of the HJTEP, it was a tremendous honor to receive its Shining Star Award," says Rubin. "And to be among so many incredible and accomplished individuals celebrating my efforts was a humbling experience."
Rubin, a former Top 10 doubles player on the WTA tour, wears many hats in her post-playing days. She's a mother, she's an advocate for youth tennis—particularly in areas of need—and she's a television analyst for Tennis Channel. When Tennis Channel CEO Ken Solomon introduced Rubin and ran down her lengthy resume, it was as if an astronomer was reciting coordinates to denote the galaxy's celestial objects. There were many, and many left unsaid.
In her speech, Rubin focused on other "shining stars" that have impacted her life and career. Althea Gibson; Katrina Adams; David Dinkins; Arthur Ashe; Jeanne Moutoussamy-Ashe, to name a few. There were many, and many left unsaid. Living up to her new title, Rubin cast a gleaming spotlight on those who deserved recognition.
