Member Spotlight: Kathy Willette
Welcome Kathy Chabot Willette—a new member of the NWTO. Kathy was inducted into the USTA Southern California Hall of Fame in 2015 along with some pretty good company—Vic Braden, Michael Chang, Lindsay Davenport, Rick Leach and Gil Shea. That she belongs with this group is clear from her impressive list of accomplishments both on the tennis court and off. That she was destined to star in tennis and life also might have been evident at a very young age—that is, if you knew that among her babysitters were Maureen Connolly, aka Little Mo, and Patsy Zellmer—her friend and doubles partner. (To refresh your memory, Maureen Connolly was the first woman to win all four grand slams in the same calendar year in 1953. She and Patsy Zellmer won the US Junior Doubles in 1950.)
Many afternoons in Morley Field, part of Balboa Park in San Diego, Kathy honed her skills and developed a love of the game under the tutelage of legendary coach, Wilbur Folsom. Like Maureen Connolly, Wilbur changed her from a left-handed player to a right-handed player— “they don’t make left-handed rackets.” At that time, you could buy a racket from him for $.50. Besides the tennis strokes, Wilbur taught life lessons and perseverance—inspiring her as a person as well as a player. Since adults had priority for courts, kids had to win two out of three games against an adult to keep their court.
Her successes on the tennis court included Junior Wimbledon finalist in 1961 and National Hard-Court Champion. She won the National junior doubles three times and was ranked as high as No. 4 in the US. In 1984, she won the Women’s 35 US Open and Hard Courts titles and was ranked No.1. She is also proud to have been a doubles partner of Billie Jean King and Karen Hantze.
Throughout her tennis career, Kathy always felt grateful for the help that had been given her by the tennis community and coaches and the San Diego Tennis Patrons. This led to her wanting to give back to the sport. And she has given back in a big way! She helped establish the Barnes Junior Tennis Center making it a major tournament venue. She served as an Officer, Board Member, President and/or Chair of Youth Tennis San Diego. Kathy has been involved in fundraising, strategic planning, and programming. Her proudest accomplishment is starting Youth Tennis San Diego's Afterschool Tennis Program in 1989 that has served thousands of kids at as many as 120 sites throughout San Diego County. This same program continues, and one of its current successes is the wheel-chair tennis program. After being involved with World Team Tennis for over 20 years, the WTT named its scholarship essay program after her. Her community involvement also includes work with Say No to Drugs, Hall of Champions, Say Yes to Sports Program and the Ronald McDonald House of San Diego.
San Diego’s loss is Colorado’s gain, and after Kathy and her husband Larry moved to be near kids and grandkids, Kathy’s plans include getting back on the court following shoulder surgery and attending all their sporting activities. She firmly believes that tennis and sports are blessings for families. Tennis promotes individual growth and resilience and the ability to problem-solve, among other things. She is looking forward to working with the NWTO as we leverage our membership to achieve our mission and to promote a well-balanced lifestyle through tennis.
It is a delightful conversation when Kathy is part of it—be sure to greet and welcome Kathy when you meet her.
