I got my first assignment for
The Midland Daily News on Saturday--needless to say I was pretty excited. I went to the office and picked up the camera, talked with Ryan Wood real quick, and then left to go shoot. I was a wee bit nervous, but all that disappeared when I met FaithAnn Sawick.
(SEAN PROCTOR | for the Daily News)
7-year-old FaithAnn Sawick practices keeping her eye on the ball while learning how to play tennis at the Midland Community Tennis Center on Saturday afternoon, April 10. Sawick, who was born with Spina bifida, came with her parents and older sister to take part in the Wheelchair Tennis Program, a new program gearing to kick off in the fall, funded by the money awarded to Midland for being named Tennis Town, USA by the U.S. Tennis Association.
7-year-old FaithAnn Sawick laughs as 10-year-old Nicky Billovits looks back to see how far FaithAnn hit the foam tennis ball on Saturday afternoon, April 10, at the Midland Community Tennis Center. Sawick was born with Spina bifida, a developmental birth defect caused by the incomplete closure of the embryonic neural tubes, causing some vertebrae to not fully form and remain unfused.
7-year-old FaithAnn Sawick beams while Susie Staloch, a teaching professional at the Midland Community Tennis Center, congratulates her after hitting a foam tennis ball back into the cart where the balls are held, on Saturday afternoon, April 10. "That's 10 points!" Staloch told FaithAnn.
7-year-old FaithAnn Sawick makes a face while she waits for a tennis ball to be thrown her way so she can hit it back on Saturday afternoon, April 10, at the Midland Community Tennis Center. Sawick originally came to attend the Wheelchair Tennis Program, but her parents decided to take her over the kids section to play because they didn't want her to get hurt. "FaithAnn is a joy, the happiest kid you'll ever meet. She never complains, she's always content." Her father, Michael, said.
FaithAnn was truly an incredible little girl. Very inspiring, seeing her laughing and playing on the court, even though she can't even walk.
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