It is with great sadness that Tennis NB learnt of the passing of one of our Hall of Fame members. Frank Remete died on April 20th in Saint John from a short term illness. He will be remembered and missed by many tennis communities not only because of his wonderful skill on the tennis court but even more so because of his extraordinary personality; his humility, his true gentleman manners and his kindness towards everyone young and old. He worked tirelessly at growing the sport of tennis in Saint John and New Brunswick and competed all over the Maritimes making lifelong friendships along the way,
Frank was inducted into the Tennis NB Hall of Fame in 2010. He was involved in tennis for over 40 years, he was known as the gentleman of tennis in the Saint John area. He excelled as a player in the 60’s and early 70’s winning a number of titles including 3 provincial closed singles titles and 4 provincial closed doubles titles. He continued to compete into the 90’s. He was also inducted into the Saint John Sports Hall of Fame. He helped form the Saint John District Tennis Association and he was a dedicated member of the Rothesay Tennis Club for many years. He was instrumental in the conversion of the Rothesay Tennis Club from hard court to clay, Har Tru, in 2000, which enabled Rothesay to become a successful tennis club after years of declining memberships. He was described by one of the past president’s of Tennis NB, “Frank Remete is New Brunswick’s version of Ken Rosewall, classic strokes, strong and athletic. A perfect gentleman on and off the court.” The current president of the Rothesay Tennis Club said “As great as Frank was as a player he was an even greater man and he was a massive contributor to our club. He had a kind spirit and would help almost anyone on or off the tennis court.”
Frank was a role model for both junior and adult players, a classy ambassador of our sport.
