Tennis Briefs: Honoring Military in Ft. Lauderdale; Peters Named VOM

Sanford’s Peters Named USTA Florida April Volunteer of the Month

Linda Dubsky Peters was born a volunteer.

So says the Sanford resident, who takes community involvement to a new level while spreading her love of recreational tennis across the Orlando area.

“It is the sport of tennis that has given me a whole new world to discover and love!” says the former New Jersey resident who relocated in 2006. “From not knowing anyone, the sport of tennis has made me so many friends.”

She first assisted USTA Florida in a partnership with Women Playing for T.I.M.E. to raise money for breast cancer and other cancers affecting women through tennis events.

“We used the event to increase [USTA Florida] membership, working with [USTA Florida Director of Marketing & Membership] Laura Bowen and [USTA Florida Tennis Program Coordinator] Shelly Licorish,” she said. “We have raised over $20,000 for the fight against breast cancer in the past four years.”

As a player Peters participates in the local USTA League, GOLD (Greater Orlando Ladies Doubles) league, WAIT (Women’s Amateur Invitational Tennis) and Classic Tennis leagues.

Her other tennis-related community endeavors have included serving on the WAIT league board, volunteering for the annual Heathrow Spring Fling with proceeds benefiting Kids’ House of Seminole, local schools and food pantries; and joining others recently in coming together to assist the family of deceased local tennis pro Sergio Rivas at Sanlando Park.

But Peters’ love and strength remains bringing together tennis and community to make the sport an integral part of people’s lives.

“I organize weekly round robin tennis play to promote comradery and networking within the sport of tennis,” she says. “I am very active in my community and often volunteer in neighborhood events in an effort to bring our residents closer together and make our community a better place in which to live. I get tremendous satisfaction and joy from seeing the smiles on young and old faces, on the tennis courts, participating in events that I have helped to make possible.”

ABOUT LINDA

Birthplace: Stamford, N.Y.
Family: Bob (husband); Eva Dubsky Francomano (sister); Colby (Silky Terrier dog)
Favorite Movie: The Thorn Birds
Favorite Food: Lobster
Favorite Travel: Prague, Czech Republic
Favorite Shot: Forehand

My earliest tennis memory was…“Around the age of 7, watching my father and uncle, both avid and successful tennis players as young men in Czechoslovakia, play tennis in upstate New York, with gut-strung wood Slazenger racquets, play tennis and wishing that one day I could be as good as they were.”

If I could play tennis with three people, they would be…“Dominika Cibulkova, Justine Henin, and Pete Sampras because they are all tennis inspirations to me.”

When I am not playing tennis I am…“Walking my dog; networking on the computer, mostly with my tennis friends; being a volunteer; spending time with my family.”

My best tennis memory is…“Watching my Hungarian aunt play tennis until the age of 89 while battling lymphoma and seeing the toll that chemotherapy and radiation took on her body. She lived for the sport of tennis and never gave up until it became physically impossible for to continue playing.”

Tennis to Honor the Military on May 7 in Ft. Lauderdale

Tennis will be part of the activities on Thursday, May 7, 2015 when Fleet Week Port Everglades welcomes the military at Jimmy Evert Holiday Park in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

Thirty crew members in port from the U.S. Marines, U.S. Navy, and U.S. Coast Guard will play tennis with the pros, with supporters convening at 3:45 p.m. for the arrival at 4 p.m. at the entrance to the tennis center.

“Your presence will demonstrate our community support for our military,” says organizer Colleen Lockwood. “Last year the crew had a blast. Let’s make this year even better. Be there to welcome them.”

Broward Navy Days, Inc., is hosting the 25th annual Humana Fleet Week Port Everglades on May 4-10 where hundreds of sailors, Marines and Coast Guardsmen coming in on five visiting ships will participate in a week of recreational activities, professional demonstrations and community service projects at locations across South Florida.

For more info go to www.browardnavydaysinc.org.