I want to begin my e-news article this month by sharing with you a very personal, sad and poignant moment in my life. My Father died when I was a young girl of eight years of age living in North Carolina. One of his best friends was from Mount Sterling, KY. As I grew older, he became a sort of surrogate Father. We especially shared a deep and abiding love for horses. Most importantly, he was a wonderful storyteller and shared with me many stories about the people of Kentucky. He was absolutely correct in his depictions. After 26 years of living in this extraordinary and beautiful state, I can say unequivocally Kentuckians make wonderful volunteers and are very special people. All I have experienced in my first year as USTA KY President has shown me just how special they are.
2017 started fast, furious and very exciting for tennis in Kentucky. The year kicked off in January with the USTA Southern Annual Meeting in Atlanta, GA. Kentucky has 18 volunteers represented from Board member to President to Committee chairs to committee members. This is quite impressive for a state of our size and says volumes about the people and tennis in our commonwealth. Two special events exemplifying Kentuckians talents were the winning of the Special Tennis Event of the Year by VIPS (Visually Impaired Preschool Services) of Louisville and the winning of the dance contest by the staff and volunteers at the Southern Tennis Patrons Foundation. A donation of 250.00 was made to our own Raise A Racquet Foundation as a result of this important event! In addition, there were many hours of hard work spent by the volunteers in meetings trying to find the best ways to deliver tennis to everyone in the Southern Section.
Next on the calendar was our own USTA KY Annual meeting and Hall of Fame Banquet held January 27-28 at the Brown Hotel in Louisville. There was a new Board member training, a General Session, committee meetings, Board of Directors meeting and all of this topped off by an incredible Hall of Fame ceremony. Approximately 200 guests were in attendance at this special event to honor the three new inductees: Chuck Cooper, Jane Gamble and Eric Quigley. All outstanding examples of what are best and special about the people of Kentucky.
In ending, I would like to say how thankful and grateful I am to be a part of the great state of Kentucky. It is filled with hard working and talented volunteers working tirelessly to bring tennis to everyone! It has been my joy and privilege to work side by side with many of them and I look forward to many more.
