To the Members of the Quincy Tennis Club,
Our family wishes to thank the Quincy Tennis Club for the outpouring of support when our father
and our mother’s husband Dr. Philip L. Maloney passed away on November 16, 2017. Our father was
truly a life long member of the club as he played at the club as a young boy and his final trip out of his
house was to walk the perimeter of the courts this past September.
He loved the game of tennis and also loved QTC where he played most frequently. Our father
noted many times how fortunate we all are that years ago someone had the idea to start the Quincy
Tennis Club and through the efforts of countless generous and talented people, the club has survived and
thrived. Our father certainly did his part. He paid for a family membership long before his children were
old enough to play and he continued to pay his dues even after becoming an honorary member. He
always tried to support the club and appreciated the club’s policy where members are admitted on a first
come first serve basis and not on discretionary selective criteria.
He contributed to the success of the club by serving as the QTC’s president twice. The first time
he was president, he took over when there were more outstanding bills than funds in the club’s account.
His first major contribution was the replacement of a broken down chicken wire fence with the chain link
fence which still stands today. He and his brother Richard, with whom he played the club’s doubles
tournament for many years, negotiated the gifting of the land behind court #5 from Mrs. Harris. Before this
was accomplished the back of court #5 was significantly shorter than the other courts. This donated land
allowed better play on this court along with the alignment of the fence with the other courts.
The second time he was president was when the membership recruited him to assume the
presidency when the wooden club house burned down in 1978. There were no funds to support a rebuild.
Many members left the club and the future of QTC was very much in doubt. He and other members
donated financially and donated their time and skills to support the rebuild. Additional funds were raised
and a new clubhouse was built by the fall of 1979. During this second term as president, our father
established the Capital Fund. Indeed, his legacy remains that in the ensuing decades the QTC benefited
from financial security and independence.
Our father attributed his longevity in part due to his lifelong participation in the game of tennis. He
remarked many times that at the end of a long day of work, he would not feel like playing but he would
push himself to go to the club and invariably felt better after playing. His hope was that QTC would
always continue to exist as a treasure to it members, the City of Quincy and the surrounding communities.
Many of you have only known our father in his later years, when his age, a stroke and multiple
injuries affected his ability to play. Despite his limitations he continued to enjoy the game and even hit a
few balls out of his hand during his last walk at the club. In his younger days, he was an extremely
accomplished player and represented Quincy and QTC well by winning the Massachusetts State Boys
Singles Tennis Title while in high school. He competed in the national competition in Kalamazoo, Michigan
where he won the National Boys 15 and under Doubles title with a pick up partner he met at the event.
He took a number of years off from tennis as he served in the military and pursued his education.
After completing his service and education he began to play again as his schedule would allow. He could
have competed in more national events but limited competition at a national level to father-son and father-daughter
events. In 1999 he was inducted into the USTA’s New England Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport,
RI. At that time he had won over 130 NE sanctioned tournaments and had number one rankings, at every
age level, throughout his decades of competition.
A few years ago a man who had grown up playing at the QTC came to the club and asked Tracy
about our father. This man insisted that Tracy had no idea how good a player our father was as a young
man. What he then said next she knew was true right away. “Your father as a young man would play
with anyone-even the young children and players much less accomplished than himself.” This statement
is true to our father’s character. He was always kind and considerate of others.
We thank you all for your support and hope that you will all remember our father kindly. May we
all continue to enjoy the club as he did while recognizing the importance of contributing positively in
whatever way we can so that future generations will continue to know the pleasure of a great game of
tennis, with family members and friends, on the beautiful clay courts of the Quincy Tennis Club.
Sincerely,
The Family of Dr. Philip L. Maloney Frances, Francie, Tracy, Philip Jr., Lynne and Stephen Maloney
