This is a message from John Rodenberg, USTA Pacific Northwest Officials Committee Chair. Please check back often as updates are posted frequently.
Tennis officials are needed in the Portland, Oregon area! Right now the demand exceeds the supply. Expand your boundaries to cover the area North from Eugene to the Washington border and inland from the coast to the crest of the Cascades and you will have an idea of the area I am referring to.
Tennis at all levels of play need officials. Currently there are 4 or 5 officials in Portland. A city this size should have 20 officials to adequately cover the year-round need for officials. The officials who currently cover Portland love the work - whether it is their hobby, full-time job or an occasional outing. But the bottom line is: MORE OFFICIALS ARE NEEDED.
Perry Hines has officiated in the Portland area for 20 years and he is also the Portland Area Assignor for USTA and ITA Collegiate events. If you need an official, you call or email Perry.
Perry himself covers the events but many of those events need upwards of 5-6 officials at a time. Certified officials are often brought in from Washington and/or California. This summer an official from South Carolina worked a month in Oregon and Washington and kept very busy. Perry says, "It's a good opportunity if someone likes tennis, has the time, and wants to have an interesting part-time job where travel and on-court opportunities are abound."
To meet the demand for officials in the Portland area, the recruiting effort is on. If you or someone you know would like to get started, email Perry Hines at phines@teleport.com or phone him at (503) 232-8156.
As a recruit, you will attend a class in early 2007, become Provisionally Certified, work five events under an experienced official, and then be Sectional Certified. USTA Junior and Senior events in the Portland area number 30 per year, National events number 2 or 3 per year, and collegiate events number 15 per year. With tennis reinstated at Portland State, the collegiate number will triple to 40 per year.
Now is the time to join. Perry can put you in touch with two or three recently certified officials who will tell you of the many benefits and great experiences to be had in the Portland area. |
