Children and adults with disabilities were in the spotlight at Flushing Meadows. They learned the basics of tennis and put them on display at the Court of Dreams clinic.
Fifteen-year-old Thaddeus Henry had been a participant at the US Open through the non-profit ACEing Autism for the past eight years.
"It's just a pleasure to see how far he's come," said his mother, Carla Rogers-Henry.
Rogers-henry explains why they keep coming.
"He has matured and in terms of the distraction level, it's amazing because he's laser-focused once he's out on the court," she said.
For others, it's a first.
"I think today was so inspiring, we've never been to the US Open," said Mitzi Walker.
Walker brought her daughter, Misa Percell.
"Just to see the families, our community come together, our children, our young adults, and just to be so included in this space is just so inspiring for us all," Walker said.
Similar sentiments were shared by Westchester mom Kim Rosenbaum.
"I've been to the US Open and never realized they had this component, so it's really special to be able to bring her and have her have the same experience as others do," Rosenbaum said.
Dillon Faulkner, who is the president of Backyard Sports Cares in White Plains brought his group for the first time.
"It's unbelievable for our kids. We do a lot of tennis throughout the community to be able to be here at the U.S. Open where the pros play. It's pretty cool," he said.
It was a special moment for volunteer coach Ethan Smolkin.
"It's just really nice way to be able to give back to the community and to be able to use my passion and my love for tennis to help others and put a smile on other people's faces," Smolkin said.
Wesley is a participant with the nonprofit Beautiful Lives Project.
"It was good, yeah it was fun," Wesley said.
Their favorite part?
"I got to do all these warm ups like rolling the tennis ball with the racket and hitting the tennis ball up in the air," Henry added.
"Inclusion is wha tit is, what we need in this world," said Walker.
As the years continue, even more organizations are joining, in hopes that even more can participate.