Empowering Austin Youth: Austin Table Tennis & YouthLaunch

Recently, your Austin Table Tennis Club management team, including Lorenz Schimonsky and Ken Jones, had the pleasure of attending the "YouthLaunch End of School Year Celebration!" at Lazarus Brewing. It was a fun, casual social event to mark the close of another school year and celebrate an organization doing incredible work in the community.

Youth Launch Organization Logo

Lazarus Brewing Co. Logo

Before the team even stepped through the doors of the brewery, they were greeted by a wonderful, unexpected surprise. Right across the street, in the front yard of a lovely light blue house, one of Austin Table Tennis Club's very own bright yellow yard signs was proudly displayed! The sign was actively promoting the Youth Table Tennis Skill Training Camp and directing passersby to AustinTT.com to 'Enroll NOW!' Spotting it there was a fun, coincidental kickoff to an evening all about community connection.

ATTC'S yellow Youth Table Tennis Skill Training Camp sign proudly displayed in someone's front yard

For those unfamiliar with YouthLaunch, their mission is beautifully simple but deeply impactful: "youth empowerment through service." They partner with local school networks—including Austin ISD, KIPP Austin, Austin Community College (ACC), and UT Austin—to provide structured, meaningful opportunities for students to make a positive difference through cross-age peer mentoring. By stewarding initiatives like the PALS (Peer Assistance, Leadership & Service) program, they empower young people to become active role models and equip the next generation with essential leadership and connection skills.

During the celebration, YouthLaunch hosted a Silent Auction to help fund their ongoing programs. The Austin Table Tennis Club was absolutely thrilled to support this mission by donating five Adult & Student passes for the auction block. Seeing the local community rally together over great local brews to bid, connect, and support these youth mentorship initiatives was the highlight of the event.

Our silent auction winner, Mary Beer (center right), alongside Kurt Lockhart from YouthLaunch (far left), and ATTC management team members Lorenz Schimonsky (center left) and Ken Jones (far right).

The excitement from the celebration is just the beginning. Austin Table Tennis Club have had some great conversations with the YouthLaunch team and are currently in discussions to host a collaborative event with them at the club in Q4! Everyone is incredibly excited about the potential of this partnership and the impact they can make together.

Stay tuned for more details on the upcoming Q4 event, and be sure to check out youthlaunch.org to learn more about how they are changing lives and empowering local students through service.