"This letter is without hesitation in support of Buddy Strawn, tennis instructor. I am currently 43 years old and have played competitive tennis since I was 9 years old. Buddy was instrumental in my development as well as the the jr tennis community of Bloomington/Normal during his years of coaching. He would go above and beyond normal group or private lessons by organizing competitive play with other tennis clubs, a jr tennis ladder to encourage competitive play at our club, and early morning drill sessions for those that wanted to compete at a higher level to name just a few."
"Buddy was crucial in the development of high level tennis along with some other local coaches to help create a "hey day" of tennis in Bloomington/Normal during the 1980′s that has never been seen since. Buddy made competitive tennis fun. He is energy in motion with instruction, drilling and teaching during lessons. He is relentless in bettering his students with fundamentals, competitive play, and sportsmanship. I look back at those years as some of the best memories I have of tennis and the friends we made through tennis. I still enjoy playing tennis now whether it is competitive or for fun with my children or friends. I look forward to the summer when Buddy returns to Bloomington, so my children can hopefully enjoy learning tennis from such a quality instructor."
Submitted by Matt Morkin DDS
Bloomington High School grad 1986 w/ honors
- IHSA state tennis qualifier singles 1984/ doubles 1985 and ’86 ( top 12 finish) with team finishes of 5th, 5th, and 10th those respective years
- Augustana College graduate 1990 cum laude (Div III tennis)
- played #1 double all 4 years
- played #1 – #3 singles during the 4 yrs
- Univ. of IL College of Dentistry grad 1994 w/ honors
- played no tennis
- USTA 4.5 men’s team tennis 2002-05,07-08
- captain 2005,07,08
- IL team champion 2002, 05, 08
- Midwest sectional champion/ National team qualifier 2005 and 2008
- Proud parent of 2 young tennis players
- my 14 yr old son has won 4 of the 9 USTA tournaments played over the last 2 yrs
- my 10 yr old daughter lost both of her matches in her first USTA tournament last summer but had fun and smiled the entire time, she can’t wait to try again. I was proud
- Both play USTA Jr Team Tennis and have an absolute blast playing tennis with their friends
