March 28, 2024

Senior Men’s Tennis

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It is a cold day on the 19th of December; but, inside Center Court in East Providence it is heating up as about thirty men playing doubles wacked tennis balls back and forth over the net. There is excitement in the air that goes beyond working up a sweat from shagging tennis balls and running around the courts. All the players know that this is the day of Adin’s Holiday Feast that will cap off, roughly, the first half of the season, and will celebrate the Holidays. He has help in this event from Charlie, Earl, Al, John and others, but as the treasurer of Senior Men’s Tennis (SMT), Adin is the leader. So, the excitement spills over when play is over as the rush to the Feast begins. Only a few know what is to come during the awards ceremony that will feature recognition for the oldest member of SMT, Owen Mahoney.

After an invocation from our Chaplain, Owen, he explains that he is retiring from tennis having reached 90 years of age, 90 mind you, because his feet do not do what his mind wants them to do. A fall, he says, would be disastrous. The feast then begins. Pizza, salad and delicious deserts provided by the members wives, are devoured with gusto and lively chatter.

The number of awards are several in number and begin with the Most Improved Player, Joe Gaedtke. He accepts with great pleasure thanking all who have helped him this fall. The next award goes to Dave Harvey and is called the Humanitarian Service Award. This just means that the writing of these reports has relieved others from performing the task! But, it is appreciated, he says.

The next, the semi-annual Foot Fault award, is presented by Joe Bakanaukas, “Big Joe.” (We have a “little Joe” too.) Joe explains with exaggerated seriousness that the recipient has earned this for only the first time but will be in deep trouble if he keeps it up. John Piekarski accepts with good humor and promises to mend his ways. He will be watched, however!

The final award of the day is a special one going to the above named man, Owen Mahoney, who, as mentioned, is giving up tennis for a variety of reasons. This is presented by his long- time friend, Al Colella, who surprised everyone including Owen. It turned out to be very emotional. Al called the award “A Man for All Seasons and Reasons” describing Owen as a model of humility, a doctor of spin (referring to his spin serve) and a true American hero. We then heard a gripping story from Owen that many had not heard before: an eye witness description of his role as an LST skipper on D Day, 1944, the Omaha Beach campaign. The room was hushed, all eyes and ears focused on Owen. When finished he held back tears as he acknowledged the award, saying that it meant a great deal to him as did his association with SMT of which he was a charter member over 25 years ago.

The annual party drew to a close after these sobering words with congratulations all around and good wishes for the Holidays. After a few minutes the cleanup was done. There were few cookies left as the last man trudged down the steps at Center Court.

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