At the age of 35, Mother Seames learned to play tennis under the instruction of A. L. Turner. Seames went on to have an eight-year winning streak at Chicago’s African-American championship from 1912 to 1919.

At the same time, Seames was coaching and teaching Black youth. She began coaching in 1906 and continued throughout her life. Seames was among the first Black tennis coaches to receive national recognition. Seames also ran a tennis club frequented by the best Black players in Chicago, including Isadore Channels. In 1912 she was one of a group that formed the Chicago Prairie Tennis Club (CPTC). CPTC is one of the country’s first private Black tennis clubs. In 1916, CPTC hosted its first annual tournaments. Members of the club first played on dirt and clay courts and on courts owned by the Armory before having some of their own to use. In 1920, Mother Seames and her husband, C.O. Seames, purchased some property on the South Side of Chicago and built four tennis courts for use by CPTC. The courts became the centerpiece of CPTC.

The non-profit organization CPTC has increased the accessibility of tennis to African-American players and, thanks in part to Mother Seames, is still in existence today. CPTC provides various levels of curriculum to greater than 150 Chicago junior players each year. It has created a positive impact in their lives through providing: a healthy extracurricular activity; scholarships for some players to pursue their education; and the skills required to advance their tennis careers.