Letter from the President 2021

Dear Wmts members,

It is with great sadness that I was notified that Cori Kirkpatrick has died. This was sudden and unexpected. Her husband, John is dealing with this loss and I am sure he would appreciate your condolences. She played a large role as the executive director team for the AMTA.

Enclosing a note about this elegant woman written by her family.

Cori Boyd Kirkpatrick, wife of longtime Virginia Mason internist John Kirkpatrick passed away unexpectantly on April 21. She had struggled for two years with a severe vascular disorder although those around her would never have known. After a storybook romance, she and her husband had a fabulous 50 year marriage, complete with 3 children, 8 grandchildren, interesting work careers and an incredible 8 years of retirement. She loved her family dearly, was a trusted friend, a marvelous cook, and kept a spotless ("museum quality" according to her kids) home, was impeccably organized and lover of a classy coat and a good book. She was fond of international travel, had a wickedly powerful tennis forehand and routinely hit a golf club farther than her husband. Her favorite people of all time were those who called her "Nana". She will be oh so sorely missed by all her were touched by her simple elegance.

Contact Information:
John.kirkpatrick48@gmail.com or text 206-914-3335

In Lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Virgina Mason Medical Center or ARCS

Stay well, Bonnie Sidoff

Dear Wmts Members,

What a strange year 2020 has been. I do hope you and your family have survived this pandemic and are in line for vaccinations. I have just been informed that Turkey has set new dates for our 2021 meeting. The dates are October 9-15, 2021. Please save those dates and check out their website for all the information. Antalya looks amazing. Hopefully international travel will once again be feasible.

Egils Valeinis, the executive secretary was hoping to have a list of all of the potential attendees to this next meeting in hopes of starting a database with emails, cellphones, specialty, etc. This would make for easier communication. Perhaps the PRESIDENTS OF EACH COUNTRY could organize such a list and share it with Dr. Egils Valeinis. Better communication makes for better tournaments as we all know.

Other good news, we have recently been in communications with the newly formed Indian Medical tennis society. The founder, Dr. Swanit Deshpande has heard about our organization and is excited to join us at our next meeting. He is also using social media to promote our organization. His enthusiasm is welcomed and so hopefully we will see a new country added to our world meeting in 2021.

Please feel free to email myself, Bonnie Sidoff at sidoffb@gmail.com or text me at 503-351-0904 with any questions or concerns. As you all know, The American Medical tennis society will host the 2022 meeting at Orlando. Hopefully, we will have this pandemic behind us completely by that time.

Reminder, stay well, stay active and keep playing tennis, Share with your tennis friends and colleagues the benefits of our organization as it is important to keep our organization growing.

Yours respectfully,   Bonnie Sidoff

Dear WMTS members,
It is with great sadness that I inform you that Miroslav Ondrej has passed away unexpectedly. Please join me in expressing your condolences to his wife Zuzanna.
Miroslav was the President of the WMTS organization from 2009-2011. He also hosted meeting in Banska Bystrica in 2010.
During my time as a member of the organization, I was lucky enough to be his mixed doubles partner when the meeting was hosted in Finland, 2009. He was an amazing tennis partner but better yet, a true gentleman. Jim Manion remembers him "beating him many times on the court without expending much energy". I know we all have many fond memories of him.
He was an exemplary member that will be missed greatly by our organization.
Sincerely,
Bonnie Sidoff
President, WMTS

Letter from the President

Dear Colleagues,

As I step in to the role of President of the WMTS organization, I want you all to know I consider it a privilege and a great responsibility. My goal is to keep this organization thriving and make our meetings a highlight event, that we look forward to, year in and year out. Our founding fathers, Dr. Stanley McCampbell and Bill Drake started this organization 49 years ago with 5 interested countries and a vision. Now we are an organization of 38 countries strong. I have to believe that the magic of this organization comes from the friendships made, the friendly but fierce tennis competition, all in the setting of a common interest in medicine and travel. Without the hard work of the past leaders, this organization would not have thrived. Many thanks to them all.

Which brings us to the present leaders. Thank you Dr. Eric Gultom, our past President, for your enthusiasm, friendliness and of course your fine leadership skills. And Dr. Egils Valeinis, our Executive Secretary who works continuously behind the scenes in ways many of us can not imagine, but without which our organization would certainly falter. Thank you both so much. Let me add my personal thanks to Micaela Hernberg, our treasurer. Her insight and contributions are so very much appreciated.

The last WMTS meeting took place in Lithuania hosted by Dr. Remigijus Zaliunas. It was amazing to experience the warm hospitality of this country. He made hosting the meeting look effortless and floored us all with how smoothly the meeting went despite several days of rain. The social events were magnificent and seemed to please everyone. Congratulations on the great success of this meeting. Please thank your extensive staff and let them know how appreciative we all are.

Our next meeting is in Antalya Turkey. It will take place October 10-16, 2020. Please join us to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the WMTS. My thanks to Turkey for offering to host the meeting. I know it will be an outstanding meeting and look forward to visiting with all the Turkish physicians.

The USA will host the 2021 meeting in Orlando, Florida, October 2-8. Please save those dates as we work hard to plan a very memorable event.

I know there are many of you who have ideas and want to contribute. Please reach out to me so we can draw from you talent and keep our organization current and magical.

Respectfully, Bonnie Sidoff MD

--Obituary--
Stanley McCampbell, M.D., USA

Our great, good friend, Dr. Stanley McCampbell, a founder of WMTS in 1971 and its President for many years, has died. I received word from his daughter, Sody, that he passed away on September 23rd. Stan was 85; he is survived by his wife, Joan, his children, Sody, Robert, Jim, and Kelly, and 6 grandchildren.

Besides being a good husband, father, grandfather, which is legacy-enough for anybody, Stan had a grand vision to bring together physicians from around the world to play tennis, to share experiences, to make friends, to have scientific sessions, and to travel to wonderful places in the world. In 1971, in Monte Carlo, he invited 5 other doctors, Enrique Gastaldi Albiol of Spain, Luciano Galanti of Italy, Bernard Kessler of France, Paul Schrankenmueller of Germany, and Wolfgang Zaunbauer of Austria, to sign on. Thus WMTS was born. It's many years later, and WMTS is still going. Thus another legacy of Stan McCampbell.

I think the last meeting where he played tennis was in Bol, Yugoslavia, in 1989. He was bothered by arthritis and found it difficult to play. However, he always wanted to know about the meetings, and I would write summaries for him. He made an appearance at the Fort Worth meeting in 1999.

I've mentioned this to WMTS friends before: Without WMTS, maybe my wife and I would have traveled to many countries, and maybe we would have met people of other countries who would become lifelong friends, and maybe we would visit international friends in their homes and they in ours, and maybe our friends' children and ours would do the same, and maybe we would remain physically fit, but?maybe not! WMTS has surely enriched our lives and the lives of many other members.

He was a very-accomplished man. His obituary (here) notes much of what he has done.

Thank goodness for Stan McCampbell. May he rest in peace.

There are 2 email addresses if you would like to send condolences: stanmac@prodigy.net and sodypop@aol.com Jim Manion
Executive Secretary
WMTS

--Member News-- 2011

Paul Young is going to be inducted into the New England Tennis Hall of Fame next June. It is a significant honor and reflects on his play and ranking over almost five decades, including eight #1 NE rankings in singles, doubles and mixed and three National rankings. The fact that he played in and won many World Medical Championships as a representative of New Hampshire, New England and the USA was also important.

The induction ceremony will be held at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island on Saturday, June 9, 2012. A reception will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 pm followed by dinner. If you are interested in going, let Paul Young know. He will need your address so they can send you an invitation.

--Member News-- May 2008

In the last meeting of the staff of the Italian Medical Tennis Society, new components have entered in the council:

President - Reali Franco from Frascati (Roma)
Vice-President - Cellini Antonio - L'Aquila
Secretary - Sciacca Vincenzo - Roma
Treasurer - Cardi Maurizio - Roma
Technical Manager - Dalle Grave Riccardo - Verona
Member - Natali Roberto - Perugia
Member - Valdè Giorgio - Bologna
Honorary President - Mercurio Giovanni - Palermo
Honorary President - Bresciano Bartolo - Marene ( Torino ) - delegated to the relationships with the foreign countries

Our website is www.tennismedici.com

--Member News--

Dr. Alonzo (Lon) Olsen, M.D., President Elect of WMTS and Betty Olsen, Executive Director of AMTA celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary on a cruise to Alaska with 12 of their family members. Their anniversary date was March 31, 2006.

Alaska was the cruise destination because Lon & Betty spent their first 1 1/2 years of marriage in Whittier, Alaska with the Army. It also happens to be the boarding port for Princess Cruise Lines. Nothing much has changed in 50 years except the Army pulled out nearly 40 years ago, and just 2 years ago Princess Cruises started using the Port of Whittier for their Alaska cruise.

Betty & Lon Olsen, MD - Provo, Utah

--Member News--
Jaroslav Kratochvil, M.D., Czech Republic. Jaroslav Kratochvil, M.D. from Czech Medical Tennis Society entred 50+ category just four days ago. Jaroslav is an excellent player-former No.5 in Junior Czech Ranking. He achieved some good results in WMTS events as well as in open senior tournaments - e.g.Czech International Senior Tennis Champion, cat.45+ in 2002. He was a member of Czech Team - a winner of Nations Cup in Karlovy Vary in August 2002 (see him on photo of this team - Jaroslav first from the right holding The Cup ). It's always a big pleasure for me to practice with Jaroslav (but I am not sure if it's a pleasure for him ). His strokes are always perfect and classic. He belongs to founders of CMTS and actually is a secretary of our society. Jaroslav belongs to the team of organizers of 32nd WMTS Congress and Championships in Karlovy Vary. He is an internist and gastroenterologist. He is married to Alena and they have a son Jan who is in teen age. Congratulations.

Jan Kirchner,MD - President of Czech Medical Tennis Society

--Obituary--
Farris Coggins, M.D., USA passed away on March 15, 2006 after a year long battle with Alzheimers.

I have known Farris for 40 years. I have every bit of respect for him as a friend, doctor, citizen, organizer, and WOW what a tennis player. He was the 10th President of AMTA with a very successful administration.

He and his wife, Mary Frances, have organized literally hundreds of tennis tournaments for children, adults, and doctors always with a notable degree of success. Over the years they have knocked themselves out so that others could have a good time.

Farris and Mary Frances have won many tennis tournaments locally, state wide, nationally, and internationally. Farris started as a novice and grew to be a world class competitor and champion.

Farris, a man with no vices, a strong family man, ultra friend, a very fine caring physician, will be sorely missed. He enjoyed the love and respect of everyone who knew him.

At one point Homer Peabody, in the process of writing a book, was accumulating anecdotes highlighted by Farris' innate wit and wisdom. I do not know if the project reached fruition. It it ever did it would surely be a best seller.

In this world there are perhaps a dozen people that I would trust totally and completely. Farris headed the list.

Stanley R. McCampbell, M. D.

--Obituary--
Homer Peabody, M.D., USA passed away December 16, 2005, in San Diego, CA. He led a fulfilling life of service and dedication to excellence in medicine and social responsibility. Homer, born in 1919, hit the ball squarely with a concentration of eyesight and strategy that always resulted in superior marks. Homer lived a very productive 88 years. His formal education included Harvard U., Columbia Medical School, Mass. General Hospital, and Mayo Clinic (Internal Medicine). He has been missed at WMTS for the past few years due to failing health yet his creative spirit has remained through his assistance up to the end in planning for the 2007 hosting of WMTS at! his “baby” the Barnes Tennis Center where youngsters of all walks can expand their education in a student-friendly environment. Those wishing to recognize Homer’s life through financial donations are directed to the Youth Tennis San Diego Foundation, 4490 West Point Loma Blvd, San Diego, CA, 92107, home of the Barnes Tennis Center.

Below is a letter written from Dr. Stanley McCampbell, M.D. to Homer's wife Betty.

Dear Betty,

I was saddened to learn from Betty Olsen that Homer had passed away.

I know that there is nothing that I can say to make you feel better, but hope to vent some of my angst by writing.

You and Homer are some of the finest people I have ever know. Homer was a giant of a man in stature and also in respect from his fellow man. He was born to leadership, living a long and productive life and during his whole life went about doing good. No higher calling comes to mind.

You must be very proud of his life as a scholar, doctor, civic leader, athlete, organizer and friend of mankind. He was unequaled in all of the above by any of my other friends.

I have very fond memories of our travels with you and Homer both here and abroad, especially Japan, China, Austria, Sweden, Tampa, Fort Worth, and all the others.

I remember with awe the excellent meeting of WMTS that you and Homer organized in San Diego. It is still, in my opinion, the best meeting of WMTS admitting some strong second place contenders.

In Bastaad, Sweden Bill Drake set it up that I would play Homer in a practice match. I thought that his sore knee would help me if I moved him about the court. Instead, Homer moved me around the court, toying with my weaknesses, and after one set had completely worn me out. I made Bill take over for me to finish the match.

I will make a donation to Youth Tennis San Diego Foundation in Homer's honor. The Barns Tennis Center is a huge permanent jewel in Homer's crown.

Joan joins me in extending every good wish.

Sincerely,
S.

--Member News--
Zbigniew Jablonski, M.D., Poland. Dr. Jablonski attended his first WMTS in August 2005, in Poland. He has a wife, Bozenna, twin daughters, and 4 grandchildren. He was a doctor in the Polish Navy and was a director of the Navy Hospital in the town, HEL, near Gdynia. He also took part in United Nations service in Egypt, 1976, and Lebanon, 1996. He is retired now. Besides tennis, he is interested in poetry and photography; he has edited 7 books of poetry. He suggests your looking at www.poema.art.pl.

--Member News--
Charles J. Supple, M.D., USA.

WHERE IS THE CALVALRY?, MAYBE THERE IS NO CALVALRY!

On November the 5th, 2005, the luxury cruise ship, Seabourn Spirit, was cruising at 14 knots about 70 miles off the coast of Somalia en route to Mombasa, Kenya. Aboard were 151 passengers, from the USA, England, Australia, Canada, Germany, South Africa and Norway, along with 161 crewmembers from some 30 countries. My companion, Judy Cala, and I were awakened at 5:30 AM by the sound of something like pinging on the hull. Judy pressed the button to open the shade and peered out the window, exclaiming "There's a boat out there!" Now we had not seen a boat for two days anywhere so this was really strange. We saw a 25 foot fiberglass open boat, with large outboard motor racing alongside. It contained five men, one operating the motor and steering, one holding a rocket propelled grenade launcher, one lifting grenades to him, and two firing away at the ship with AK47s. The bullets were making the pinging sound we heard. The boat was about 30 yards away from us and about 20 feet below. Too close for comfort. In the meantime the Captain was announcing over the speaker system that "There is an unfriendly vessel on the starboard side and for everyone to get off the decks." Then he announced for us to stay in our staterooms and lock the door. Makes one think the pirates had already boarded the ship. I decided that the photo opportunity was great, so grabbed my camera just in time to see the launcher holder aim seemingly at me and fire. What a burst of flame. As I dove for the other side of the stateroom I could feel the thud of the missile hitting nearby (two staterooms forward and two decks up - about 20 feet) The Captain now announced he wanted every one in the dining room, that was the safest part of the ship. Every one was calm, even though on deck six there was a great deal of smoke and on our deck, (four) the smell was very strong. How much fire was there? We went down the stairs to the dining room which was the deck below. Can you imagine 75 women, hair in curlers, piled high, no makeup, bathrobes?

For the next 45 minutes or so we heard the incessant pinging of bullets and occasional thud of a grenade hitting. The Captain kept us informed, he was zigzagging to create a large wake and he was turning east to get out to sea, hoping that the boats would use up too much gas and turn around so they could get back to shore. He had sent out Maydays and notified the home office in Miami (Seabourn) and LA (Carnival) I really don't know what they could have done! At first we were all on the port side, then he suddenly announced that there was another boat on that side firing at us, and for everyone to sit in the middle. Soon the staff was serving coffee and water while we listened to the bullets strike the hull! Finally he announced that the pirates were turning back.

What we didn't know was that at the beginning one boat was 25 feet from the stern and was trying to board. Later we learned the LRAD (long range acoustic device) was used along with water canons, to drive them away. It seems the most effective one was the LRAD. I had never heard of such a thing. The operator was injured, superficial lacerations, from flying debris when they tried to shoot and disable the device. Radar had not picked up the boats as they were fiberglass. It was thought that we were out of range for this type small boat, but evidently a mother ship brought them out so there range was much greater.

Later we saw the broken windows on the top observation lounge, bullet holes in the ceiling, smoke stains on the hull from the grenades, chipped pain, and one rocket protruding from the hull (That was the one that I thought was aimed at me!). The Captain told us that he had received a Mayday call from another ship just before the attack. He could not recognize the radar inscription so refused. It was probably a mother ship that had brought the smaller vessels out to us and was trying to get us to slow down, or turn.

The Captain stated that we would not be going to Kenya and instead would head straight for the Seychelles, about a day and a half away, and that the USS Gonzales would be meeting us. I interpreted that to mean we would be escorted but the ship met us in harbor at Victoria, checked us out carefully, removed shells that had not exploded and finally gave us the ok to dock. While in Victoria we learned of the amazing number of fishing vessels and freighters that had been hijacked during the past year.

After the initial fright and feeling of thanksgiving wore off and we learned more about our predicament, one started wondering about many things. Why were we 70 miles off the coast instead of the recommended 200? Why were we cruising at a normal speed instead of a recommended maximum speed? If it were safe where we were, why did we have security people on watch, why did we have the LRAD, and why did Seabourn reassure me after the Sharm el Shaik bombing that there was no reason to change the itinerary and the routing was safe.

Maydays didn't seem to do much good. We never saw a plane that might help us. One is all alone on a very big ocean. Thank goodness we had a very good, brave Captain who incidentally happens to be a dead ringer for Sean Connery in "Hunt for Red October." How can you be frightened when James Bond is leading you? Was Seabourn cutting it close, were they taking unwarranted chances with their passengers and crew?

If you are going on a cruise, check the US travel advisories on the internet, avoid areas where trouble might find you and use lots of common sense. We enjoyed the rest of the trip, but were uneasy thru the Straits of Malacca and the Singapore straits. It is a big wild world and there are dangers out there!

--Obituary--
Gunnar Stenninger, M.D., Sweden died at 77 years old, after a period of illness. Gunnar had a private practice in pediatrics and was also one of the best tennis players in his age category in Sweden. He was a very active member of the WMTS and made his début 1977 in Båstad Sweden. During many years he was a faithful participant in our congresses and tennis tournaments and gained many victories. In Nations Cup he played both the 45+ doubles and the 55+ single for Sweden. Gunnar had an excellent forehand and was mentally strong and always a gentleman on the court. He really loved his tennis and the WMTS. Unfortunately he could not participate during the last years because of health problems. We mourn over a very good friend and feel sympathy for his wife Birgitta and the son Erik prominent tennis player in WMTS.
Carl-Gustaf Oxelius

--Member News--
Mike Reilly, M.D., USA. (Mike was a mainstay for many years with us, and he's a fantastic player, but he's become fairly domesticated, as you'll see when you read this.) He married late, at age 49, and he now has 4 boys, ages 5,3,2, and 1, with more to come. "My wife let me play tournaments this year and I am ranked #1 in Florida for 2005 in the Men's 55 singles. Family Medicine is the specialty and am the team doctor for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for 10 years including being president of the Major League Baseball Team Doctors' Association the past 2 years. On the Board of The Free Clinic (volunteer monthly for 25 years), Alpha House Pregnancy Center, Catholic Charities, Florida State High School Medical Advisory Committee, and our self-insured medical malpractice board for 300 physicians for 20 years. We all have to do what we can when we can because life may end at any time as many of us see with our friends. Keep playing tennis."

--Member News--
Giorgio Dobrilla, M.D., Italy. Dr. Dobrilla and a priest have made comments, aphorisms, in a book, Homo Sapiens? Un Prete Un Medico E 200 Aforismi, on themes of "love, hate, war, peace, God, Devil, science, physicians, Church, marriage, etc." Royalties are totally devoted to the distal adoptions of children in Africa and Brazil. If one of our colleagues wishes to translate the book in English, the benefits for the unfortunate children could be much greater.

--Obituary--
Imre Glied, M.D., Hungary.

Our Hungarian friend, Imre Glied, died 2 years ago from lung cancer though he had never smoked cigarettes. He was a good husband, father, doctor, friend, and tennis player. He played a very strong game of doubles with his long-time partner, Laszlo Bota. His first meeting was in Finland in 1994. I remember a hard-fought battle between these two Hungarians and 2 Swedish players, Staffan Eden and Lars Hagberg. In 1999, Imre, his wife, Katya, and other Hungarian friends visited us in Nebraska after the Fort Worth, Texas, USA meeting. We played a lot of tennis in Omaha; Imre’s cross-court-sliced-backhand was impossible to get. It’s a shame that he is gone from us. Sincerely, Jim Manion

Letter from the President 2021

Dear Wmts members,

It is with great sadness that I was notified that Cori Kirkpatrick has died. This was sudden and unexpected. Her husband, John is dealing with this loss and I am sure he would appreciate your condolences. She played a large role as the executive director team for the AMTA.

Enclosing a note about this elegant woman written by her family.

Cori Boyd Kirkpatrick, wife of longtime Virginia Mason internist John Kirkpatrick passed away unexpectantly on April 21. She had struggled for two years with a severe vascular disorder although those around her would never have known. After a storybook romance, she and her husband had a fabulous 50 year marriage, complete with 3 children, 8 grandchildren, interesting work careers and an incredible 8 years of retirement. She loved her family dearly, was a trusted friend, a marvelous cook, and kept a spotless ("museum quality" according to her kids) home, was impeccably organized and lover of a classy coat and a good book. She was fond of international travel, had a wickedly powerful tennis forehand and routinely hit a golf club farther than her husband. Her favorite people of all time were those who called her "Nana". She will be oh so sorely missed by all her were touched by her simple elegance.

Contact Information:
John.kirkpatrick48@gmail.com or text 206-914-3335

In Lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Virgina Mason Medical Center or ARCS

Stay well, Bonnie Sidoff

Dear Wmts Members,

What a strange year 2020 has been. I do hope you and your family have survived this pandemic and are in line for vaccinations. I have just been informed that Turkey has set new dates for our 2021 meeting. The dates are October 9-15, 2021. Please save those dates and check out their website for all the information. Antalya looks amazing. Hopefully international travel will once again be feasible.

Egils Valeinis, the executive secretary was hoping to have a list of all of the potential attendees to this next meeting in hopes of starting a database with emails, cellphones, specialty, etc. This would make for easier communication. Perhaps the PRESIDENTS OF EACH COUNTRY could organize such a list and share it with Dr. Egils Valeinis. Better communication makes for better tournaments as we all know.

Other good news, we have recently been in communications with the newly formed Indian Medical tennis society. The founder, Dr. Swanit Deshpande has heard about our organization and is excited to join us at our next meeting. He is also using social media to promote our organization. His enthusiasm is welcomed and so hopefully we will see a new country added to our world meeting in 2021.

Please feel free to email myself, Bonnie Sidoff at sidoffb@gmail.com or text me at 503-351-0904 with any questions or concerns. As you all know, The American Medical tennis society will host the 2022 meeting at Orlando. Hopefully, we will have this pandemic behind us completely by that time.

Reminder, stay well, stay active and keep playing tennis, Share with your tennis friends and colleagues the benefits of our organization as it is important to keep our organization growing.

Yours respectfully,   Bonnie Sidoff

Dear WMTS members,
It is with great sadness that I inform you that Miroslav Ondrej has passed away unexpectedly. Please join me in expressing your condolences to his wife Zuzanna.
Miroslav was the President of the WMTS organization from 2009-2011. He also hosted meeting in Banska Bystrica in 2010.
During my time as a member of the organization, I was lucky enough to be his mixed doubles partner when the meeting was hosted in Finland, 2009. He was an amazing tennis partner but better yet, a true gentleman. Jim Manion remembers him "beating him many times on the court without expending much energy". I know we all have many fond memories of him.
He was an exemplary member that will be missed greatly by our organization.
Sincerely,
Bonnie Sidoff
President, WMTS

Letter from the President

Dear Colleagues,

As I step in to the role of President of the WMTS organization, I want you all to know I consider it a privilege and a great responsibility. My goal is to keep this organization thriving and make our meetings a highlight event, that we look forward to, year in and year out. Our founding fathers, Dr. Stanley McCampbell and Bill Drake started this organization 49 years ago with 5 interested countries and a vision. Now we are an organization of 38 countries strong. I have to believe that the magic of this organization comes from the friendships made, the friendly but fierce tennis competition, all in the setting of a common interest in medicine and travel. Without the hard work of the past leaders, this organization would not have thrived. Many thanks to them all.

Which brings us to the present leaders. Thank you Dr. Eric Gultom, our past President, for your enthusiasm, friendliness and of course your fine leadership skills. And Dr. Egils Valeinis, our Executive Secretary who works continuously behind the scenes in ways many of us can not imagine, but without which our organization would certainly falter. Thank you both so much. Let me add my personal thanks to Micaela Hernberg, our treasurer. Her insight and contributions are so very much appreciated.

The last WMTS meeting took place in Lithuania hosted by Dr. Remigijus Zaliunas. It was amazing to experience the warm hospitality of this country. He made hosting the meeting look effortless and floored us all with how smoothly the meeting went despite several days of rain. The social events were magnificent and seemed to please everyone. Congratulations on the great success of this meeting. Please thank your extensive staff and let them know how appreciative we all are.

Our next meeting is in Antalya Turkey. It will take place October 10-16, 2020. Please join us to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the WMTS. My thanks to Turkey for offering to host the meeting. I know it will be an outstanding meeting and look forward to visiting with all the Turkish physicians.

The USA will host the 2021 meeting in Orlando, Florida, October 2-8. Please save those dates as we work hard to plan a very memorable event.

I know there are many of you who have ideas and want to contribute. Please reach out to me so we can draw from you talent and keep our organization current and magical.

Respectfully, Bonnie Sidoff MD

--Obituary--
Stanley McCampbell, M.D., USA

Our great, good friend, Dr. Stanley McCampbell, a founder of WMTS in 1971 and its President for many years, has died. I received word from his daughter, Sody, that he passed away on September 23rd. Stan was 85; he is survived by his wife, Joan, his children, Sody, Robert, Jim, and Kelly, and 6 grandchildren.

Besides being a good husband, father, grandfather, which is legacy-enough for anybody, Stan had a grand vision to bring together physicians from around the world to play tennis, to share experiences, to make friends, to have scientific sessions, and to travel to wonderful places in the world. In 1971, in Monte Carlo, he invited 5 other doctors, Enrique Gastaldi Albiol of Spain, Luciano Galanti of Italy, Bernard Kessler of France, Paul Schrankenmueller of Germany, and Wolfgang Zaunbauer of Austria, to sign on. Thus WMTS was born. It's many years later, and WMTS is still going. Thus another legacy of Stan McCampbell.

I think the last meeting where he played tennis was in Bol, Yugoslavia, in 1989. He was bothered by arthritis and found it difficult to play. However, he always wanted to know about the meetings, and I would write summaries for him. He made an appearance at the Fort Worth meeting in 1999.

I've mentioned this to WMTS friends before: Without WMTS, maybe my wife and I would have traveled to many countries, and maybe we would have met people of other countries who would become lifelong friends, and maybe we would visit international friends in their homes and they in ours, and maybe our friends' children and ours would do the same, and maybe we would remain physically fit, but?maybe not! WMTS has surely enriched our lives and the lives of many other members.

He was a very-accomplished man. His obituary (here) notes much of what he has done.

Thank goodness for Stan McCampbell. May he rest in peace.

There are 2 email addresses if you would like to send condolences: stanmac@prodigy.net and sodypop@aol.com Jim Manion
Executive Secretary
WMTS

--Member News-- 2011

Paul Young is going to be inducted into the New England Tennis Hall of Fame next June. It is a significant honor and reflects on his play and ranking over almost five decades, including eight #1 NE rankings in singles, doubles and mixed and three National rankings. The fact that he played in and won many World Medical Championships as a representative of New Hampshire, New England and the USA was also important.

The induction ceremony will be held at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, Rhode Island on Saturday, June 9, 2012. A reception will be held from 5:30 to 6:30 pm followed by dinner. If you are interested in going, let Paul Young know. He will need your address so they can send you an invitation.

--Member News-- May 2008

In the last meeting of the staff of the Italian Medical Tennis Society, new components have entered in the council:

President - Reali Franco from Frascati (Roma)
Vice-President - Cellini Antonio - L'Aquila
Secretary - Sciacca Vincenzo - Roma
Treasurer - Cardi Maurizio - Roma
Technical Manager - Dalle Grave Riccardo - Verona
Member - Natali Roberto - Perugia
Member - Valdè Giorgio - Bologna
Honorary President - Mercurio Giovanni - Palermo
Honorary President - Bresciano Bartolo - Marene ( Torino ) - delegated to the relationships with the foreign countries

Our website is www.tennismedici.com

--Member News--

Dr. Alonzo (Lon) Olsen, M.D., President Elect of WMTS and Betty Olsen, Executive Director of AMTA celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary on a cruise to Alaska with 12 of their family members. Their anniversary date was March 31, 2006.

Alaska was the cruise destination because Lon & Betty spent their first 1 1/2 years of marriage in Whittier, Alaska with the Army. It also happens to be the boarding port for Princess Cruise Lines. Nothing much has changed in 50 years except the Army pulled out nearly 40 years ago, and just 2 years ago Princess Cruises started using the Port of Whittier for their Alaska cruise.

Betty & Lon Olsen, MD - Provo, Utah

--Member News--
Jaroslav Kratochvil, M.D., Czech Republic. Jaroslav Kratochvil, M.D. from Czech Medical Tennis Society entred 50+ category just four days ago. Jaroslav is an excellent player-former No.5 in Junior Czech Ranking. He achieved some good results in WMTS events as well as in open senior tournaments - e.g.Czech International Senior Tennis Champion, cat.45+ in 2002. He was a member of Czech Team - a winner of Nations Cup in Karlovy Vary in August 2002 (see him on photo of this team - Jaroslav first from the right holding The Cup ). It's always a big pleasure for me to practice with Jaroslav (but I am not sure if it's a pleasure for him ). His strokes are always perfect and classic. He belongs to founders of CMTS and actually is a secretary of our society. Jaroslav belongs to the team of organizers of 32nd WMTS Congress and Championships in Karlovy Vary. He is an internist and gastroenterologist. He is married to Alena and they have a son Jan who is in teen age. Congratulations.

Jan Kirchner,MD - President of Czech Medical Tennis Society

--Obituary--
Farris Coggins, M.D., USA passed away on March 15, 2006 after a year long battle with Alzheimers.

I have known Farris for 40 years. I have every bit of respect for him as a friend, doctor, citizen, organizer, and WOW what a tennis player. He was the 10th President of AMTA with a very successful administration.

He and his wife, Mary Frances, have organized literally hundreds of tennis tournaments for children, adults, and doctors always with a notable degree of success. Over the years they have knocked themselves out so that others could have a good time.

Farris and Mary Frances have won many tennis tournaments locally, state wide, nationally, and internationally. Farris started as a novice and grew to be a world class competitor and champion.

Farris, a man with no vices, a strong family man, ultra friend, a very fine caring physician, will be sorely missed. He enjoyed the love and respect of everyone who knew him.

At one point Homer Peabody, in the process of writing a book, was accumulating anecdotes highlighted by Farris' innate wit and wisdom. I do not know if the project reached fruition. It it ever did it would surely be a best seller.

In this world there are perhaps a dozen people that I would trust totally and completely. Farris headed the list.

Stanley R. McCampbell, M. D.

--Obituary--
Homer Peabody, M.D., USA passed away December 16, 2005, in San Diego, CA. He led a fulfilling life of service and dedication to excellence in medicine and social responsibility. Homer, born in 1919, hit the ball squarely with a concentration of eyesight and strategy that always resulted in superior marks. Homer lived a very productive 88 years. His formal education included Harvard U., Columbia Medical School, Mass. General Hospital, and Mayo Clinic (Internal Medicine). He has been missed at WMTS for the past few years due to failing health yet his creative spirit has remained through his assistance up to the end in planning for the 2007 hosting of WMTS at! his “baby” the Barnes Tennis Center where youngsters of all walks can expand their education in a student-friendly environment. Those wishing to recognize Homer’s life through financial donations are directed to the Youth Tennis San Diego Foundation, 4490 West Point Loma Blvd, San Diego, CA, 92107, home of the Barnes Tennis Center.

Below is a letter written from Dr. Stanley McCampbell, M.D. to Homer's wife Betty.

Dear Betty,

I was saddened to learn from Betty Olsen that Homer had passed away.

I know that there is nothing that I can say to make you feel better, but hope to vent some of my angst by writing.

You and Homer are some of the finest people I have ever know. Homer was a giant of a man in stature and also in respect from his fellow man. He was born to leadership, living a long and productive life and during his whole life went about doing good. No higher calling comes to mind.

You must be very proud of his life as a scholar, doctor, civic leader, athlete, organizer and friend of mankind. He was unequaled in all of the above by any of my other friends.

I have very fond memories of our travels with you and Homer both here and abroad, especially Japan, China, Austria, Sweden, Tampa, Fort Worth, and all the others.

I remember with awe the excellent meeting of WMTS that you and Homer organized in San Diego. It is still, in my opinion, the best meeting of WMTS admitting some strong second place contenders.

In Bastaad, Sweden Bill Drake set it up that I would play Homer in a practice match. I thought that his sore knee would help me if I moved him about the court. Instead, Homer moved me around the court, toying with my weaknesses, and after one set had completely worn me out. I made Bill take over for me to finish the match.

I will make a donation to Youth Tennis San Diego Foundation in Homer's honor. The Barns Tennis Center is a huge permanent jewel in Homer's crown.

Joan joins me in extending every good wish.

Sincerely,
S.

--Member News--
Zbigniew Jablonski, M.D., Poland. Dr. Jablonski attended his first WMTS in August 2005, in Poland. He has a wife, Bozenna, twin daughters, and 4 grandchildren. He was a doctor in the Polish Navy and was a director of the Navy Hospital in the town, HEL, near Gdynia. He also took part in United Nations service in Egypt, 1976, and Lebanon, 1996. He is retired now. Besides tennis, he is interested in poetry and photography; he has edited 7 books of poetry. He suggests your looking at www.poema.art.pl.

--Member News--
Charles J. Supple, M.D., USA.

WHERE IS THE CALVALRY?, MAYBE THERE IS NO CALVALRY!

On November the 5th, 2005, the luxury cruise ship, Seabourn Spirit, was cruising at 14 knots about 70 miles off the coast of Somalia en route to Mombasa, Kenya. Aboard were 151 passengers, from the USA, England, Australia, Canada, Germany, South Africa and Norway, along with 161 crewmembers from some 30 countries. My companion, Judy Cala, and I were awakened at 5:30 AM by the sound of something like pinging on the hull. Judy pressed the button to open the shade and peered out the window, exclaiming "There's a boat out there!" Now we had not seen a boat for two days anywhere so this was really strange. We saw a 25 foot fiberglass open boat, with large outboard motor racing alongside. It contained five men, one operating the motor and steering, one holding a rocket propelled grenade launcher, one lifting grenades to him, and two firing away at the ship with AK47s. The bullets were making the pinging sound we heard. The boat was about 30 yards away from us and about 20 feet below. Too close for comfort. In the meantime the Captain was announcing over the speaker system that "There is an unfriendly vessel on the starboard side and for everyone to get off the decks." Then he announced for us to stay in our staterooms and lock the door. Makes one think the pirates had already boarded the ship. I decided that the photo opportunity was great, so grabbed my camera just in time to see the launcher holder aim seemingly at me and fire. What a burst of flame. As I dove for the other side of the stateroom I could feel the thud of the missile hitting nearby (two staterooms forward and two decks up - about 20 feet) The Captain now announced he wanted every one in the dining room, that was the safest part of the ship. Every one was calm, even though on deck six there was a great deal of smoke and on our deck, (four) the smell was very strong. How much fire was there? We went down the stairs to the dining room which was the deck below. Can you imagine 75 women, hair in curlers, piled high, no makeup, bathrobes?

For the next 45 minutes or so we heard the incessant pinging of bullets and occasional thud of a grenade hitting. The Captain kept us informed, he was zigzagging to create a large wake and he was turning east to get out to sea, hoping that the boats would use up too much gas and turn around so they could get back to shore. He had sent out Maydays and notified the home office in Miami (Seabourn) and LA (Carnival) I really don't know what they could have done! At first we were all on the port side, then he suddenly announced that there was another boat on that side firing at us, and for everyone to sit in the middle. Soon the staff was serving coffee and water while we listened to the bullets strike the hull! Finally he announced that the pirates were turning back.

What we didn't know was that at the beginning one boat was 25 feet from the stern and was trying to board. Later we learned the LRAD (long range acoustic device) was used along with water canons, to drive them away. It seems the most effective one was the LRAD. I had never heard of such a thing. The operator was injured, superficial lacerations, from flying debris when they tried to shoot and disable the device. Radar had not picked up the boats as they were fiberglass. It was thought that we were out of range for this type small boat, but evidently a mother ship brought them out so there range was much greater.

Later we saw the broken windows on the top observation lounge, bullet holes in the ceiling, smoke stains on the hull from the grenades, chipped pain, and one rocket protruding from the hull (That was the one that I thought was aimed at me!). The Captain told us that he had received a Mayday call from another ship just before the attack. He could not recognize the radar inscription so refused. It was probably a mother ship that had brought the smaller vessels out to us and was trying to get us to slow down, or turn.

The Captain stated that we would not be going to Kenya and instead would head straight for the Seychelles, about a day and a half away, and that the USS Gonzales would be meeting us. I interpreted that to mean we would be escorted but the ship met us in harbor at Victoria, checked us out carefully, removed shells that had not exploded and finally gave us the ok to dock. While in Victoria we learned of the amazing number of fishing vessels and freighters that had been hijacked during the past year.

After the initial fright and feeling of thanksgiving wore off and we learned more about our predicament, one started wondering about many things. Why were we 70 miles off the coast instead of the recommended 200? Why were we cruising at a normal speed instead of a recommended maximum speed? If it were safe where we were, why did we have security people on watch, why did we have the LRAD, and why did Seabourn reassure me after the Sharm el Shaik bombing that there was no reason to change the itinerary and the routing was safe.

Maydays didn't seem to do much good. We never saw a plane that might help us. One is all alone on a very big ocean. Thank goodness we had a very good, brave Captain who incidentally happens to be a dead ringer for Sean Connery in "Hunt for Red October." How can you be frightened when James Bond is leading you? Was Seabourn cutting it close, were they taking unwarranted chances with their passengers and crew?

If you are going on a cruise, check the US travel advisories on the internet, avoid areas where trouble might find you and use lots of common sense. We enjoyed the rest of the trip, but were uneasy thru the Straits of Malacca and the Singapore straits. It is a big wild world and there are dangers out there!

--Obituary--
Gunnar Stenninger, M.D., Sweden died at 77 years old, after a period of illness. Gunnar had a private practice in pediatrics and was also one of the best tennis players in his age category in Sweden. He was a very active member of the WMTS and made his début 1977 in Båstad Sweden. During many years he was a faithful participant in our congresses and tennis tournaments and gained many victories. In Nations Cup he played both the 45+ doubles and the 55+ single for Sweden. Gunnar had an excellent forehand and was mentally strong and always a gentleman on the court. He really loved his tennis and the WMTS. Unfortunately he could not participate during the last years because of health problems. We mourn over a very good friend and feel sympathy for his wife Birgitta and the son Erik prominent tennis player in WMTS.
Carl-Gustaf Oxelius

--Member News--
Mike Reilly, M.D., USA. (Mike was a mainstay for many years with us, and he's a fantastic player, but he's become fairly domesticated, as you'll see when you read this.) He married late, at age 49, and he now has 4 boys, ages 5,3,2, and 1, with more to come. "My wife let me play tournaments this year and I am ranked #1 in Florida for 2005 in the Men's 55 singles. Family Medicine is the specialty and am the team doctor for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays for 10 years including being president of the Major League Baseball Team Doctors' Association the past 2 years. On the Board of The Free Clinic (volunteer monthly for 25 years), Alpha House Pregnancy Center, Catholic Charities, Florida State High School Medical Advisory Committee, and our self-insured medical malpractice board for 300 physicians for 20 years. We all have to do what we can when we can because life may end at any time as many of us see with our friends. Keep playing tennis."

--Member News--
Giorgio Dobrilla, M.D., Italy. Dr. Dobrilla and a priest have made comments, aphorisms, in a book, Homo Sapiens? Un Prete Un Medico E 200 Aforismi, on themes of "love, hate, war, peace, God, Devil, science, physicians, Church, marriage, etc." Royalties are totally devoted to the distal adoptions of children in Africa and Brazil. If one of our colleagues wishes to translate the book in English, the benefits for the unfortunate children could be much greater.

--Obituary--
Imre Glied, M.D., Hungary.

Our Hungarian friend, Imre Glied, died 2 years ago from lung cancer though he had never smoked cigarettes. He was a good husband, father, doctor, friend, and tennis player. He played a very strong game of doubles with his long-time partner, Laszlo Bota. His first meeting was in Finland in 1994. I remember a hard-fought battle between these two Hungarians and 2 Swedish players, Staffan Eden and Lars Hagberg. In 1999, Imre, his wife, Katya, and other Hungarian friends visited us in Nebraska after the Fort Worth, Texas, USA meeting. We played a lot of tennis in Omaha; Imre’s cross-court-sliced-backhand was impossible to get. It’s a shame that he is gone from us. Sincerely, Jim Manion

Excerpts from Dr. Stanley McCampbell's, "My Memoirs of The World Medical Tennis Society," written in 1991.

"To me it has been a great honor to know and enjoy the friendship of doctors from around the world. It has been the most exciting experience of my life. Doctors... can be assured that if they travel thousands of miles to meetings, they will be certain of a warm welcome, well-organized tournaments and scientific sessions, and a grand, good time. It is an opportunity, unequalled, as far as I know, of enjoying the friendship of interesting, fun loving, sportsman-like doctors who will be friends for life. I would certainly like to do it all over again."