Each year, the South Shore YMCA’s Laura’s Love Memorial Tennis Event is a fun community tournament held to raise funds that directly benefit inclusive programming at the Emilson YMCA in Hanover. The tournament is held in memory of Laura Emilson-Riekert, whose passion for the Y’s kids and inclusion programs has helped inspired countless kids and families in our community.
Emilson-Reikert, who passed away in 2011, is the Laura behind the naming of the Y’s Laura’s Center for the Arts and the Laura’s Love tennis tournament in which the Lob-Stars inclusive Tennis team will be playing this year on Sunday, May 19.
“Laura’s Love touches people in different ways, said Senior Director of Tennis for the South Shore YMCA Bob Carroll. “For our tennis-playing members, it’s a chance to meet our Lob-Star players, marvel at their accomplishments, and in many cases, strike up new friendships. For the players, it’s a chance to not only showcase their endless dedication to tennis, but also to remember Laura Emilson Reikert, the tournament’s namesake. Laura was very special to this group. She treated them as her own and they responded. Each year at the event, without fail Lob-Star players will take a moment to mention Laura and how much they miss her.
“Laura’s Love embodies Inclusion Programming at the South Shore YMCA through a tennis-centric atmosphere,” shared Dan Berry, Executive Director of the Emilson YMCA in Hanover. “Laura embodied the spirit of serving through the sport of Tennis. She was a champion of inclusion in its earliest form at the Y. This event, Laura’s Love, is a shining example of how the Y puts its mission first, especially with how it serves people in our inclusion programming. Laura’s Love and the Lob-Star tennis team are just one piece of our inclusion programming, but events like this support and help to shine a positive light on all of our inclusion programming at the South Shore YMCA.”
“The Lob-Stars program is absolutely wonderful,” shared a parent of one Lob-Stars team member. “The team is led by Lucy Dickman and Martha DeGregorio, as well as volunteer coach Jim Lawson. The staff goes above and beyond their jobs when it comes to their adaptive tennis program. Tennis has become a huge part of my son’s life because of these coaches. This group is more like a family to my son, with the participants ranging from the age of 16 to 65. In the 5 years he has been playing tennis he has improved greatly, not only in tennis but in his life and social skills. This program has opened up opportunities that many of the participants would never have.”
“The Y’s doors are open to all,” said Carroll. “Giving to the upcoming Laura’s Love Tennis tournament directly supports programs and services for individuals living with intellectual or developmental disabilities, so that everyone in our community can truly belong.”
The 9th annual Laura’s Love Memorial Tennis Tournament will include: a unified tournament at 3 pm, a mixed doubles tournament at 4:30 pm and a social gathering at 5:30 pm. The event’s athletes will all be invited to join the fun and mingle with the crowd to talk about how the program, and Laura, changed their lives.
To register to play in the Laura’s Love tournament, contact Maureen Ahl at mahl@ssymca.org or call 781-829-8585, Ext. 8263. For more information about the event, contact Bob Carroll at bcarroll@ssymca.org at 781-829-8585, Ext. 8229.
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About the South Shore YMCA
The South Shore YMCA is a not-for-profit association of individuals dedicated to improving the quality of life for all through programs that promote healthy spirit, mind, and body. Serving the communities of Quincy, Randolph, Holbrook, Weymouth, Braintree, Milton, Hingham, Hull, Cohasset, Scituate, Norwell, Hanover and beyond, the South Shore Y provides the opportunity to grow, learn, and thrive through its services and programs. Financial Assistance is a Y community benefit available to all families in need, applicable to all Y programs and services. To learn more about the South Shore YMCA, visit www.ssymca.org. The South Shore YMCA. The Better You Belongs Here.
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