Members of this tennis club are welcome to participate in "the Jump Start Tournament" over the weekend of March 16-18. This is a fundraiser for a defibrillator for the tennis center. The life it saves could be your own! Interest is already high as the format guarantees play on all three days of the tournament and brackets are filling, so if you want to participate, please return the application as soon as possible - application will have been sent to all members of the tennis club by now.

1st, 2nd and 3rd place awards will be made in all brackets, snacks will be served each day and dinner on Saturday night is included.

The latter part of March is one of the best times to visit Borrego Springs. Perfect weather is *almost* guaranteed and we are looking forward to a good wildflower bloom around the time of the tournament. The weekend of the tournament is also the same weekend as the Circle of Art Show, a free art show and sale with over 70 artists, including oil and watercolors, photography, sculpture, ceramics, pottery, weaving, jewelry and more, all on display in Christmas Circle Park in the heart of Borrego Springs.

With all the wonderful activities scheduled that weekend, hotels and motels will fill up quickly so we suggest making your room reservations now.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Harold & Sheila - Sandi & Borden

Hi all,

Just a quick update on the Jump Start Tournament, March 16-18. We have a good time planned with lots of tennis every day and the Saturday night dinner will be at a local restaurant with some great music by our own Sheldon Baker and his group, Shakin'. We heard them play in December and they had everyone either on their feet or at very least tapping their toes. Sheldon says with Mike Virgil doing vocals and Ptrak on drums a splendid time is guaranteed for all (to borrow a phrase from the Beatles). And Nancy Shoemaker has agreed to do a guest appearance with Shakin' and sing a few special songs for us.

Everyone who has paid is in the tourney. We currently have 24 women and only 10 men signed up, so I am opening up another bracket for women. I can do that and still accommodate more men, but you guys need to contact me to confirm your space. It's going to be a great time and we don't want anyone to be left out, so please let me know ASAP if you want to participate. I can email you another application if you need one, or you can just call or email me to let me know you want to play, and then mail a check to the address below to reserve your place in the tournament.

Looking forward to seeing lots of friends, having a lot of fun, and playing and watching some good tennis !

Warmest regards,

Harold

Jeff Marxen won his division with mixed-doubles partner Harriet Lisak in October 2010 Jeff, a native of Ohio, was 60 and left behind 3 children (Philip, Jeffrey Christopher, and Marissa) his wife, Annette, and stepsons (Sean and Todd). Jeff was a well-respected orthopaedic surgeon at Sharp Grossmont - specializing in joint replacements and repairs, who was proud to have just recently performed his first robotic joint replacement surgery after 32 years in his practice.

It saddens me to tell you that Jeff Marxen was killed when he hit a curb while riding his motorcycle this past Thursday evening (February 23, 2012). A memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 3rd, at 1:00 pm at Shadow Mountain Community Church, 2100 Greenfield Drive, El Cajon 92019. A reception will be held at the church immediately following the service. Our Borrego Springs Tennis Club will make a donation to the Rotary Club, an organization near and dear to Jeff, where he has been a devoted member, even serving as president at one time. Please remember Annette and their children in your thoughts and prayers. If you wish to send a card, the address is: 13004 Brixton Pl., San Diego, CA 92130 Marilyn

Apparently the board does not believe that last suggestion (which would effectively end membership in favor of moving what amounts to membership fees into tournament fees) would work for the club, and who knows, maybe they're right. They are still considering a compromise solution: an reduced membership fee for those who can only come to a limited number of tournaments.

It is uncertain if the snowbird discount will be continued. This discount is applied to those who live over 150 miles away, and not only side-steps membership fees, but also does not compensate for this and fees collected are pretty small.

Our usual happy hour will be at 6:30pm Saturday, followed by the potluck at 7pm. If you have any gifts for door prizes, put them in the designated door prize area.

For those who missed the February tournament, we had near perfect weather - sun and little wind on Saturday, highs in the 70s, and partly cloudy with some wind, but pleasant temperatures on Sunday.

Since then, San Diego County had a good storm with lots of snow in the mountains and rain in the desert. Snow levels reached down to about 2000' and roads were closed in the mountains on the night of February 27. Jef and Kathy, coming home from San Diego that night, barely made it thru the blizzard, with only partial traction getting over the final hump (the lowest pass in the area - Teofulio Pass, elevation 3636'). Visibility was poor at times(maybe 50') with heavy snowfall. 30 miles of snow and 20 miles of icy roads had to be traversed by them that night.