"*Halloween Tennis Tournament* This coming Friday night is the tennis tournament at Las Animas Park with warm-up starting at 5:30. Cost is $20 payable that night. It is a mixer with no partner needed. Please contact Ruth by Wednesday, if you would like to play. irvingruth@gmail.com *Tennis Club Banquet* The combined tennis club banquet for Gilroy and Morgan Hill is on November 16th. It is a buffet dinner at Old City Hall beginning at 6:00. Cost is $40 per person. The dinner consists of prime rib, salmon, chicken, potatoes, rice, salad, veggies, appetizers and mousse for dessert. Please go on-line to sign up and pay. (A detailed flier has already been sent to you.) Hope to see everyone there. *Raffle Prizes needed* If you have something that you would like to contribute to the Banquet raffle, please contact me at ekm@ix.netcom.com and we will arrange a drop-off time. Your item could be something that you have created or something that is in good condition that you no longer want around your home. You can donate wine, food or whatever you think is appropriate. All proceeds go for court improvements. *Court Improvements* Speaking of court improvements, Gilroy’s Parks and Recreation Commission honored the Gilroy Tennis Club at their last meeting thanking us for re-surfacing courts 1-4. This last re-surfacing cost the club $21,000. It is important to know where your money is being spent when we collect club dues and team fees. We appreciate all of you who captain, play on teams, and support our club events. This is how we earn the money to keep making improvements to the courts. For our future projects, we would like to replace the net posts, purchase new windscreens and put up shade structures. However, we do not have the money for all of this especially when we have re-surfacing every four years. Your continued support determines how much we can do for the club. *Upcoming tennis leagues* In January, the 55 mixed and the 40+ adult leagues begin. There is a new rule change—players need to have played three matches to qualify for play-offs and beyond. Since I have stated above that we need more revenue to keep improving our facilities, I would really like all of you to think about captaining teams at the different levels and start putting rosters together. It would be great to offer 3.0, 3.5 and 4.0 men’s and women’s 40+. (I captain the women’s 3.5 40+ league.) I would like to see some 55 mixed teams at the 6.0, 7.0 (I know we have captains at this level) and 8.0. WE NEED YOU!!!! *Board Vacancies* Speaking of needing you, we have three board positions open but one has recently been filled. Ann Barham will be replacing Paula who is retiring after 12 years as secretary. Thank you, Paula, for all you have done for the club and welcome to Ann. Ruth Irving and Debbie Baker will be leaving us also. Their help has been invaluable. So, on that note, we have a vice-president and membership opening. You need to be computer savvy and organized to be membership because memberships sometimes need daily updating. If you are interested in either of these positions, please write and tell us why you would like that position and what you can contribute to the club and e-mail it to me. We are looking for people with new ideas and are willing to take on other responsibilities. You will be expected to participate in club events by helping out and also helping us to grow the club. The Board will read over these applications in December and announce who will be joining us. That’s it for now. Carol

"*Cardio Tennis is coming to GTC* Time and dates: every Wednesday evening beginning September 4th at 6:30pm and Monday mornings, beginning, September 9th at 8:30am at Las Animas Park. Join us for one hour of cardio tennis workouts with skill drills, multiple activity stations and lots of fun for a gathering of coed tennis players at all levels. Join Ray Blagof, your Cardio Coach in this fun filled group fitness and calorie burning program that will fit your comfort zone. Call or email Ray Blagof to reserve a spot. Cost is $20 per person or purchase a package of four (4) one hour cardio tennis workouts for $70. Limited class size so call or email now to reserve your place. Ray Blagof email: rblagof@garlic.com and cell number: 408-891-2235. *Upcoming events* Sunday, September 1st from noon-5:00 at “The Oaks” at Las Animas Park. BBQ and tennis tournament—all for $10. Children 5 and under eat for free.(You do not need to play in the tournament to attend.) Please sign up on-line at the Gilroy Tennis Club site by Monday, August 26th. We need 40 paying people to make this event happen. If the event is cancelled, your money will be refunded to you. Saturday, September 21st from 6:00-9:00 PM at Sarah’s Vineyard is the Chili Cookoff. For $20 per person, you get 2 glasses of wine and tastings of chili. Cooks are still needed so please respond to this e-mail if you are interested. Prizes for best chili, people’s choice and best decorated table. You may purchase online at GTC or pay at the door. The weather is always beautiful for this event, so come and enjoy food, wine, music and the camaraderie of friends. Bottles of wine will be available for purchase. No one under 21 may attend. October 25th Halloween tournament at Las Animas Park from 6:00-8:00 with some place to go afterwards for dinner and drinks. More information in September. November 16th Joint tennis banquets with Morgan Hill and Gilroy at Old City Hall restaurant. This year the dinner will be a buffet featuring prime rib, chicken and salmon plus the usual side dishes. Cost is $40 per person. More info in the months to come. Hope to see all of you at one or more of these events. Las Animas courts will be re-surfaced starting this coming weekend through August 31st. Courts 1-4 will be closed for the week. Combo and 40 Mixed doubles will be starting in September. Please contact a captain if you would like to join a team. That’s it for now. Carol

"We have some fun events coming up for the rest of the year. Mark your calendars and sign up on –line at Gilroy Tennis Club. We have a little bit of everything for everyone. September 1st – Joint Gilroy and Morgan Hill tennis club BBQ at “The Oaks” at Las Animas from noon-5:00 PM. Hamburgers, side dishes, dessert and water will be provided for the cost of $10 per person. You may also sign up for the tennis tournament for no additional charge. Music will be provided by Tony Bontempi and Rich Braen. Please sign up on-line at gilroytennisclub.com. If you are only a Morgan Hill member, you may sign-up on Morgan Hill’s home page. Please make sure you fill in your rating and phone number if you plan on playing in the tournament. This event is sponsored by GTC. September 14th – India from USTA will be sponsoring a morning tournament. More information to follow on cost and where to sign up. Event includes breakfast snacks, lunch and prizes for all. It is a fun event and a great way to spend a Saturday morning. September 21st - The chili cook-off is back at Sarah’s Vineyard from 6:00-9:00. Cost is $20 for all the chili you can eat and two glasses of wine. Cooks are needed so please let Rachel Banse know if you are interested by simply responding to this e-mail. The weather is always beautiful at that time of year, so come on out and enjoy the evening. October 25th – That Friday night will be our “spooktacular” Halloween tournament from 5:30 to 8:00. Participants will be dressed in their “ghoulish” best. More information to follow as we get closer. Cost is $20 per person. November 16th – Joint tennis club banquet, hosted by Gilroy, is being held at Old City Hall from 6:00-10:00. It will be a buffet dinner: tri-tip, chicken, salmon, salad, potatoes, rice, vegetable, dessert, coffee and iced tea. (All you can eat.) Music is provided by a DJ. All this for $40 per person. The September 1st and September 21st events will be available for sign-ups beginning the week of July 22nd. The September 14th event will be available through a flier through USTA. I will pass it on as soon as I get it which should be some time in August. Hope to see you at some or all of these events. Carol

"Happy New Year to All!!! We are proud to have seven teams playing out of Gilroy Tennis Center this season for the 40 and over adult season and the 55 mixed season. Remember, captains, please have your members pay their club dues by February 1st so you will be eligible for a free club membership for 2020. *18 and over adult season* Registration opens February 4th. Think about captaining a team and get a roster going. There are five lines for this season: 2 singles and 3 doubles. *Wayland Parking Lot* As we all know, there are issues with this particular parking lot with drug and alcohol abuse. The neighbors living by it have complained to the mayor and have asked to have it closed. The Board recently met with Mayor Velasco and he has agreed to keep it open for the public but has asked everyone to please call the police if we witness any of the behavior mentioned above. He wants to create a call volume that lets the police know this is a serious issue and the parking lot needs more frequent visits by them. *Morgan Hill Banquet* The Morgan Hill Tennis Club hosted a wonderful banquet at the Community Center. Around 140 people were in attendance. Dave Bozzo always serves a delicious dinner and the band was fun to dance to. There were many silent auction items and raffle prizes donated by both clubs which helped pay for the event. A good time was had by all. Thank you, Morgan Hill. *Court Improvements* We are looking at re-surfacing courts 1-4 this year, putting in shade structures on the courts and building a shade structure to cover the bleachers and table. With the city’s permission these improvements can take place. We will keep you posted because as you know we have been working on the shade structures for some time. *Future tennis club events* For your planning purposes, mark your calendars for these events: USTA tournaments: Saturday April 13th and September 14th Club tournaments: Friday May 3rd and October 25th Summer event to be held at the Oaks at Las Animas in conjunction with Morgan Hill: Sunday, September 1st Club Banquet hosted by Gilroy : Saturday, November 16th, Old City Hall More info to follow. Happy Tennis, Carol

"*Banquet update* Please remember to buy your tickets for the tennis club banquet for Saturday, December 8th, on-line at either Gilroy or Morgan Hill’s tennis club sites. Cost is $30 per person. There will be music, food and a “hosted” bar. Also, if you were a captain for GTC in 2018, we will be honoring you so please plan on attending. *Upcoming events* For your planning purposes we have two tournaments scheduled and two USTA tournaments that will be forthcoming. Mark your calendar for our Cinco de Mayo tournament on May 3rd and our Halloween tournament on October 25th. The banquet for next year will be hosted by us and will be on November 16th at Old City Hall. There will be a summer event that we will start working on beginning of 2019. If you have any specific suggestions for this summer event, please let us know. *Facility Improvements* Courts 5 and 6 were re-surfaced a couple of months ago costing $9300. I need to start leaning on the City of Gilroy to do those fence repairs they have promised us for over eight months. We discussed about getting a cover to go over the bleachers and table to eliminate the sap dirtying both up. Also, we still would like to pursue the possibility of bench canopies like Morgan Hill’s to help our players during the summer heat. If you have any suggestions for other projects, please let us know. (Yes, yes, we do know the soccer players are still playing on the courts.) *Upcoming season* The 40+ adult and 55 mixed seasons are starting in January. Team registration ends December 10th. Please make sure you have committed players for your team before you register it. Remember 40+ has 2 single and 3 doubles and the team fee is $150. These matches can start at noon on the weekends or weeknights. The 55 mixed has 3 doubles and the team fee is $90 and can start at 9:00 on the weekends or weeknights. Please let Paul Nguyen (paulinium@gmail.com), our new court scheduler, know when you would like your matches played. Team fees must be paid before any home matches are scheduled. *2019 Club Membership* Dues are $50 for an individual and $25 for a spouse. Senior rates for 65 and over are: $40 for an individual and $20 for a spouse. 2019 memberships can be paid on-line beginning January 1st . Your dues and team fees go to facility improvements. Have a Happy Thanksgiving and remember to “Gobble until you wobble.” Carol

"**Tennis banquet** Please remember to save December 8th for the club banquet. Morgan Hill is hosting at the Community Center on Dunne Ave. As soon as I get the details, I will pass them on to you. **Halloween tournament** Look in your inbox for the flier for the tennis mixer on October 26th. It will be mixed doubles but depending on the number of entries, there might be some men and women’s doubles also. There is a “no host” dinner at Old City Hall afterwards where the prizes will be given out. The mixer runs from 5:30-8:00. (5:30 is warm-up) **Chili cook-off** Everyone present had a nice time eating chili, drinking wine and dancing to the DJ. I thought we would need extra food, however, the eight chefs brought plenty and no one went away hungry or thirsty. Marc Hanson won best chili, Lucy Grisetti won people’s choice and Stephanie Dunkle won best decorated table. A big thank you to all who entered. We had some very unique table set-ups and delicious chili to experience. We are entertaining new ideas for next year’s event just to keep it fresh for everyone and hopefully draw a large crowd. **2019 events** Speaking of events, we have decided to host three tournaments, a summer club social event and it is our turn to host the banquet. We are planning a March mixer, Cinco de Mayo mixer in May and our Halloween mixer in October. Since our fall social event is close to our banquet, we would like to plan a summer evening at one of the wineries with a special theme. We agreed Old City Hall was a great place to host our banquet last year so we are looking at that venue once again. We chose November 16 , 2019 as the date. If anyone has other ideas of where and when to host the banquet, e-mail us back and we will consider it. Please check your calendar and plan on joining us on October 26th for a “spooktacular” time at the Halloween mixer. Wear a costume!!

"*August 2018 Club Membership* If you are playing on a fall team for the first time this year, our dues are half price since this is the last season for the year. Membership dues are the main contributing source of our treasury and provides the money needed to keep the courts up. *Chili Cook-off* September 15th at Sarah’s Vineyard from 6:00-9:00. Chefs need to arrive at 5:30 for set-up. DJ is Mike Malinao. Please bring a picnic since chili might not fill you up. The price is $20 per person which includes two glasses of wine, chili, and music at a gorgeous venue on a beautiful fall night. You are welcome to bring family and friends (over 21) to enjoy the occasion. We will close the event when we reach 100 people, so start purchasing your reservations on-line. *Facility Update* We plan on Saviano starting court re-surfacing on Monday, August 27th on courts five and six. Those courts will be closed for the week. We are still in the City of Gilroy’s queue to have the fence repairs and new wind screens. Hopefully by December we will see those improvements. The homeless numbers are starting to increase again at the park so if you see any questionable behavior, please call the police. The City wants to stay on top of this before the criminal behavior gets out of hand. *Fall Leagues* We have four combo teams and one mixed doubles team playing for GTC this season. Paula’s mixed doubles team will be playing out of Los Nogales. *Fall tournament* We have a Halloween tournament for GTC members on Friday, October 26th. More information in the September newsletter and upcoming flier. Speaking of tournaments—we just received a $450 check from USTA for hosting the June tournament which was run by USTA. It was a great tournament because they ran it, gave great prizes to the winners and all participants, had snacks and a filling lunch and best of all—I didn’t have to do anything. For our $20, we walked away with a great deal. I am going to look into a fall tournament for us to host for USTA. That’s it for now. -Carol