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As competitive high school table tennis players for many years, we've experienced the simple joys that this game can bring, such as being able to connect with new players and loosening up over a casual game. Moreover, playing table tennis has instilled in us the crucial values of hard work, friendly competition, sportsmanship, and the maintenance of a healthy lifestyle.

Despite the sport’s benefits, a large proportion of people in the US recognize it as a serious sport, lack knowledge about the nature of competitive table tennis, and/or have the finance to train competitively. Therefore, because of these cultural and financial barriers, not enough people are exposed to the lifelong benefits of competitive table tennis.

As players who have reaped lifelong benefits from table tennis, we created the Student Table Tennis Activists Foundation to give back to the community and make sure that all people have the opportunity to enjoy the sport as we did. Specifically, we want to address the cultural and financial barriers preventing many from playing. In our organization, we raise cultural exposure to competitive table tennis by creating and managing table tennis clubs at high schools around the state and organizing an annual charity “Pong4Change” tournament that draws participants from various backgrounds and ethnicities who might not otherwise play ping pong. Moreover, we take the funds to provide free paddles and offer free personal training for economically disadvantaged players, so that all who want to play can play.