A Tennis Tournament for the Animals 🐑

To those reading this, I’m Zachary👋 and I’ll be stepping onto the tennis court this September to raise funds for the animals 🐔🐮🐷 and for the work of We The Free.

This wasn’t my original plan. I had hoped to take on the Triple Crown ⛰️(hiking and mountaineering, but without a committed partner and with the season closing in on technical routes, that goal just wasn’t realistic or safe. For a while, I used my injured shoulder as an excuse not to participate in sports, which was disheartening because I’ve always loved being active. When our local WTF team decided to host a tennis tournament as part of the global fitness challenge, it felt like the perfect opportunity to pivot, start healing my shoulder properly, and rediscover my love of sports🎾.

For me, this challenge is about more than fitness. It’s about improving my health, rebuilding strength in my shoulder, and getting comfortable with being a beginner again. I’m a naturally competitive person 🏆, but I know I’ll be walking into this tournament as someone who’s barely held a racket before. That’s going to be a humbling experience, but also an important one. It's also a reminder that growth often means being willing to look silly, to learn, and to keep showing up ✨.

Animal rights is the issue that weighs on me most heavily. By scope and scale, I believe it’s the greatest social justice issue of our time. What happens to animals every day breaks my heart 💔, and I want to do everything I can to be a voice for them. That’s why I’m aiming to raise $1,000 for We The Free. These funds will be TRIPLED thanks to a donation matching program 🔥, with a third going directly to support our Calgary team 🍁. That means your support will directly equip and empower activists here on the ground, as well as globally, to continue educating the public about animal exploitation and inspiring a vegan world.

I can’t promise to play well in this tournament, but I can promise to prepare and give my best. That’s how I try to approach animal advocacy too, with persistence and effort which after all, is all anyone can ever give 💚. WTF gives activists the tools to make real change, in Canada and many other countries and I’m proud to support their work through this fundraiser.

I would be very grateful if you joined me by donating whatever you can 🙏. Every contribution will go three times as far, and together we can help create a kinder world for animals. Thank you!