The sharp pop of pickleball echoed across the high school tennis courts on Saturday as dozens of players filled the courts to raise money and create awareness for Stand With Everyone Against Rape (SWEAR), an initiative at the regional high school.
The tennis courts at Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School were packed on Saturday, but not with the usual sound of serves and volleys. Instead, the sharp pop of pickleball echoed across the grounds as dozens of players, from seasoned competitors to first-timers, filled the courts for a cause much bigger than the game.
The first annual pickleball tournament was hosted by Stand With Everyone Against Rape (SWEAR), an initiative at MVRHS in partnership with Connect to End Violence, a program of Martha’s Vineyard Community Services. Proceeds from the event and the awareness it generated will support SWEAR’s ongoing mission to educate young men about harmful gender norms, and empower them to confront rape culture and become leaders in the fight against gender-based violence.
“The sheer motivation that these kids have to do better and be part of ending gender-based violence is inspiring to all,” said Jack Pachico, a former MVRHS student, and SWEAR participant who now works at the high school. “To have them be exposed to the topic and be so comfortable with conversations around it is a huge first step.”
Leigh Feldman show good form for a good cause.
Leigh Feldman show good form for a good cause.
SWEAR began in 2015 as a MVRHS senior capstone project, modeled after a program started at Dover-Sherborn High School. Since then, the Island program has grown into a cornerstone of the high school’s culture.
Each year, SWEAR selects a group of students, with a focus on young men, for a two-day retreat at Camp Burgess on Cape Cod. There, young men and women take part in discussions about gender roles, masculinity, pornography and the roots of the normalization of sexual violence. The goal is to encourage honest conversations, build empathy and create leaders in the school community.
This past year the program included 30 students: 22 boys and 8 girls.
“Kind of our main job going on the retreat was to represent all women,” Avery Mulvey said during a Gazette interview in March after the retreat. “We went there to listen and to learn, mostly... and to provide guidance when needed.”
Turnout was robust.
Turnout was robust.
Rodeo Purves-Langer, who captains the school’s cross-country team, took part in the March retreat and said at the time that locker-room talk was one of the reasons he signed up for SWEAR.
“I really wanted to know how to be an advocate for what SWEAR stands for, and how to kind of eliminate locker-room talk and set a better example for the underclassmen,” he said during the March interview.
On the pickleball courts Saturday morning, Amy Lilavois, co-advisor of SWEAR and MVRHS wellness director, said she sees up close the changes that happen during and after the retreat.
“They go back to school after these two days transformed, and they are seeing things in the hallway and they are overhearing conversations,” she said. “Men are part of the problem but it is a human issue. We just want boys to be aware of what exists.”
Lily Pigot (left) Lacey Dinning (right).
Lily Pigot (left) Lacey Dinning (right).
When students return from the retreat, they present what they have learned from their peers. That ripple effect, organizers say, has had a visible impact on the culture at MVRHS.
For seniors like Reese Malowski, a former participant turned volunteer, the pickleball tournament was about more than competition.
“This event is really great because it is bringing so many people together towards, yes, pickleball, but it is centered around this conversation and this topic,” Ms. Malowski said. “To have something happen and be able to support and connect all the organizations that help our community is really special.”
Elle Mone, another senior and SWEAR volunteer, echoed that sentiment.
“It is not something that is really talked about, but seeing so much of our grade go and open up, be honest, and really dive into it and experience it was really amazing,” she said.
As pickleball rallies played out across the courts Saturday morning, the spirit of the event went far beyond the score. For SWEAR, it was about raising awareness, building connections and reminding the community that ending gender-based violence requires that everyone get involved.
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