It’s Thanksgiving! What about tennis are you thankful for? Four Alto Lakes Tennis Association members paused play long enough to reply.
Melissa Kriegel: “I am so thankful for learning to play tennis at a young age. I have made many lifelong friends, one being our own Elaine Wedgeworth. We met about 25 years ago in Georgetown, TX, at Berry Creek Country Club. We were paired for doubles and formed a great partnership. If not for tennis, I wouldn’t have met her and would have missed a lasting friendship. I am also thankful for tennis at Alto Country Club because I have met so many nice ladies who will become lifelong friends, too. Everyone here in Alto is so welcoming– and puts up with my unconventional slice!
“After what I’ve been through, I’m thankful I can still play!” avows the indomitable Paul Braun. He relates a series of accidents years ago that left his athletic body “unable to walk.” He persevered, rehabilitating until he regained his 4.0 rating. But Fate didn’t leave him alone. “Two years ago, I had a heart attack.” He not only survived that crisis, but thrived. Today you’ll find him on the courts, playing competitive singles with Judi Von Collenburg and doubles “with the guys.” Can’t keep a good player down, Paul!
I caught a triumphant Judi just after one of her hard-fought matches with Paul. “I’m thankful I can beat him every now and then,” she replied with a bright smile. “I don’t do it often, but today I did! And I’m really thankful!”
Ron Hagquist is thankful a stray tennis ball landed in his backyard when he was a sixth-grader in El Paso. “I remembered seeing an old tennis racket in the garage. Turns out the tennis racket was my Dad’s, maybe from the 1930s or 40s. I started hitting the ball against the garage door. It was fun.” When his Dad noticed Ron hitting, he got Ron his own racket and the two began playing together at a local park a couple of blocks’ walk from their home. They played for years until Ron left for college at U T Austin, but “every time I came home, we’d play. After I graduated and returned to El Paso for a ‘real job,’ I got myself and my father memberships in the El Paso Tennis Club. We entered Father and Son tournaments and even won one. Those are memories I cherish. I'm really thankful for tennis with my Dad.”
As for me, I”m thankful for the cute tennis outfits at the Alto and Outlaw Pro Shops. Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday, and celebrate just living-Amanda Bradley
So, what about tennis are YOU thankful for? Happy Thanksgiving from ALTA! —Yvonne Lanelli
Postscript 1...
When Thanksgiving is just a (burp) memory, start off your Christmas season with ALTA's famous Crazy Christmas Bash on December 2. New this year: we double our fun, joined by our sister pickleball gang, ALPA. It will be an Ugly Sweater Party, so dig out your most horrendous cardigan and watch your email for details!
Postscript 2…...
Tennis continues every Friday at 10:00 am on the Outlaw tennis courts.
Postscript 3…...
The ALTA community is thankful that work on the Outlaw Pavilion/Restroom project has begun. We would especially like to thank Scott Dickerson and Ken Wall of ALGCC’s Construction Committee for all the hard work and hours they put in to make this project a reality. Since April 2022, the site has been without a shelter (due to high winds that blew the previous pavilion down) and the addition of restrooms will make all the court players and users of the pavilion much more comfortable. Thank you ALGCC for this much-needed amenity.
