On Friday, we celebrated youth and tennis at the Washington Tennis and Education Foundation's annual Tennis Ball at the West End Ritz Carlton.

A highlight came when tennis prodigy Taylor Townsend, who’s headed to the French Open in a few weeks, took the stage and praised WTEF. We snapped her with Linda Spirtos, her coach and three-time Grand Slam winner Zina Garrison, and WTEF Board prez Hillary Baltimore.

Hundreds of guests were served (pun intended) a great evening of food and fun, which included live and silent auctions. Here, Kastles’ John Coleman, Chris Weiner, and Kelly Nygaard surround journalist Alexa Lazerow; at right, Kastles' tennis great Bobby Reynolds.

WTEF provides education and tennis to underserved DC kids. Here, former tennis great and father of sports marketing Donald Dell, FedEx’s Gina Adams, and WTEF supporters Lynne and Christopher Cowan.

The night raised over $850,000. Here, Jeanne Bierkan, US Geological Survey’s Sharon Jordan, and interior designer Daphne Jarvis.