In 2023, Joseline Umulisa launched the Tennis Rwanda Children’s Foundation (TRCF) with a single mission: to prove that a tennis court is more than a playing surface. It is a foundation for life.
Starting with just six children and one site, Joseline — a survivor of the 1994 genocide and Rwanda’s top-ranked tennis player for nearly two decades — transformed a dream into a movement. By 2026, TRCF has expanded to five sites, reaching over 1,000 children across Rwanda.
More Than a Game
Joseline’s story is defined by resilience. As the first Rwandan member of the International Tennis Club of the United States and a fixture at the top of the national rankings since 2008, she knows better than anyone the power of the sport to provide structure, discipline, and a sense of belonging.
Earlier this year, her story reached the global stage. The Tennis Channel film Tennis Can Be My Medicine received a Sports Emmy nomination at the 46th Annual Awards. But for Joseline, the true reward is not the recognition. It is the children. Currently, TRCF operates entirely on borrowed, temporary facilities. With five sites and 1,000+ students, the foundation is now raising $45,000 to build its first dedicated home court — a permanent space for the next generation to thrive.
“It’s more than academic and sports training. It’s providing real-world tools these children need to improve their lives, and the lives of others.” — Joseline Umulisa, Co-Founder, TRCF
The Full Circle: Junior’s Journey
The true power of the LOVE ALL pipeline is best told through Junior Hakizumwami. In 2024, Junior left Kigali on a LOVE ALL Scholarship to train at the world-renowned Mouratoglou Academy in France.
He did not just train; he excelled. He competed, studied, and gained a global perspective on what is possible. But the story does not end in France.
This summer, Junior will return to Rwanda — not as a visitor, but as a TRCF intern. He will bring the elite techniques and insights he gained at the highest levels of the sport directly back to the children who walk the same path he once did. This is the “Full Circle” promise: scholars who go out to gain the world, only to return and help build their own.
As Junior prepares to head to Keiser University in Florida this fall to begin his collegiate journey, his upcoming summer back in Rwanda will stand as a powerful testament. When you provide academic and athletic equity, you are not just changing a life; you are creating a leader.
Join the Movement
The partnership between LOVE ALL and the Tennis Rwanda Children’s Foundation is about creating a roadmap for success that stretches from Kigali to the world stage and back again.
Joseline is building the infrastructure. Junior is living the journey. We are here to ensure the pipeline stays open for the next generation of changemakers.
