ROCKPORT, Maine (WABI) – Tennis players gathered in Rockport Sunday for a yearly tournament to honor the memory of a beloved tennis player in Midcoastal Maine.
“We all miss Eric dearly, but it’s events like these that really help us remember him, remember his impact on the greater Mid Coast area and tennis in general,” said Tennis Instructor Matt Clark.
More than 70 tennis players gathered for the 3rd annual Eric Lee Memorial Tennis Tournament to cap off the Midcoast Recreational Center’s capital campaign.
The tournament is named in honor of Eric Lee, who was a beloved tennis coach in the area.
“Eric was always just really good at putting a smile on your face. You know, he was the kind of guy you’d walk in the room, and you just couldn’t help but smile. He had a great energy, just great vibes about him,” said tennis player Chris Kemp who knew Lee personally.
“He brought that to the tennis court, whether it was his friends, his colleagues, the people he was working with. He was just really, really good and at giving that energy away,” said Kemp.
Players got the chance to server on the recently opened Eric Lee Memorial Tennis Courts, named in his memory.
“Part of the reason why we have these new outside tennis courts is for our summer tennis camps, which Eric was the driving force behind its growth,” said MRC Tennis Director Seth Meyers.
Proceeds from the event will go towards maintaining the courts, as well as to provide summer camp scholarship opportunities for kids in the future.
“I worked with Eric personally for a few years here at MRC and I saw first-hand about his impact on in inspiring a number of people, both juniors and adults alike, to continue to play tennis, to take up tennis. Many of those people are still playing, which is just fantastic to see,” said Clark.
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