Kathy Miller Announces Retirement from Running the USTA Long Island Adult League
Each day, Kathy Miller makes the short drive from her Merrick home to Carefree Racquet Club in North Merrick, where she is the General Manager. She spends early mornings and late nights ensuring the club’s daily activities, from adult groups to junior lessons and everything in between, run seamlessly to provide the best tennis experience for all who enter the facility.
But for the last 36 years, she has also spent countless hours running the adult leagues throughout Long Island, serving as the Long Island Adult League Coordinator for USTA Eastern. For three decades, Miller has been crucial in organizing leagues, communicating with players, scheduling matches and solving problems.
“There’s a lot of work involved even beyond organizing the leagues,” said Miller. “A lot of times, players come to me looking to join a team, and I help them find the right fit. The USTA also comes up with new programs that they want to create, so I spend time reaching out to other clubs to try and get them off the ground. And the e-mails go on all day and all night long, hearing from players and fielding their questions, or dealing with grievances. Understanding how to deal with all the different personalities is a tremendous part of the job.”
When Miller took over back in the 1980s, the leagues consisted of less than 500 players. Now, there are more than 4,000 league players, which creates the problem of having a lot of personalities to deal with.
“I’m so lucky to have great team captains,” she said. “If I hear about a player who is exhibiting bad sportsmanship, I’ll usually call the captain and tell them I’ve been getting complaints, and that he/she should talk to them before a grievance is filed. Most of the captains are wonderful and on top of that. The clubs have also always been so supportive. They are accommodating in terms of booking court time and hosting matches. Without the support of the captains and the clubs, there wouldn’t be a league.”
The Adult League teams from Long Island are often some of the most successful in the country, consistently winning sectional and national titles, including this past year when Long Island sent 12 different teams to Nationals.
But after overseeing the league’s growth and success, Miller is retiring from her position effective April 15, 2022, putting a bow on a fantastic career in charge of the USTA Long Island Adult League.
“I’ve been doing it for so long, and I think now is the perfect time to begin stepping away,” said Miller. “I’m still going to be at Carefree for a few more years but I’m definitely going to miss the people I deal with through the league, which is why it’s good I am sort of phasing out of it. I’ll still be at Carefree, and will see a lot of the people that have become my friends.”
Miller’s successor will be Jennifer Giordano, and the two have already begun working together to ensure that transition will be a smooth one. After finalizing the 40&Over Mixed Doubles league for the winter, their attention will turn to preparing the ever-growing summer leagues, featuring an array of divisions sorted by ages and skill levels.
“Kathy is an absolute treasure and I now understand why she is so well respected,” said Giordano. “Having this opportunity to work alongside her on a daily basis will most certainly ensure my success.”
Giordano will have some large tennis shoes to fill when she takes over, but she is prepared to grab the baton from Miller and continue growing these leagues.
“One of my goals is to manage this position as well as she did, I know they are big shoes to fill but with her help I am up for the challenge!” Giordano added. “It has been a pleasure getting to know her and I wish her all the best.”
Like with any major decision, Miller initially had some moments of pause where she debated whether or not to go through with the retirement, but there more she thought about it, the more she realized it was the right decision for her and her family.
“When I made it official that I wasn’t going to do this anymore, I did have a few hang-ups and doubts, because I met some of my best friends through this league throughout all these years,” she said. “I’ve met wonderful people through this league, If there are 5,000 players in the league, 4,990 of them are amazing. It’s the 10 that aren’t that tend to stick out in your mind. But overall, I’m going to miss the people, and I love seeing the camaraderie of the teams when they are together. I’m definitely going to miss all of that.”
For 36 years, Miller has been a vital cog in the engine that is the Long Island tennis community.
“I am looking forward to being here for a few more years, and then having more time for myself and my family, and just be able to enjoy life a little more.”
