Location: Palo Alto, CA More Info: Click here Date: August 8th – 15th, 2009 Sports Chair: Dennis Davis Dennis Davis was the organizer of the 25th Anniversary Ping-Pong Diplomacy at Stanford University.  He has organized and managed many local table tennis tournaments. Davis managed the table tennis competition for the 2006, 2007 & 2008 Bay Area Senior Games.

Dear Friends, It is with an aching heart that I write this email about Mike Dempsey. Michael passed away this morning from an aneurysm in his brain. He was in Ohio for business at the time. It was very sudden and unexpected. I spoke with Shannon, Mike’s wife, just an hour ago and she asked that I let people know about the services that will be held for Michael. She told me that Michael had played a table tennis match on Sunday, with his 6 year old son, Henry, watching him win the last of 4 tough games. He left Monday for his business trip, attended a meeting on Tuesday and then had to go to the hospital after the meeting was finished. Shannon flew out with Henry yesterday and Michael passed away this morning. Shannon asked me to help her out with letting people know would be very grateful if you would pass the information on in this email to anyone who knew Michael. The first service will be on Monday, May 4th, in Deleware, Ohio (just north of Columbus) -St. Mary’s Church at 10am with a reception to follow. The second service will be on Saturday, May 9th in Rancho Santa Fe, California. (northern San Diego county) -Details have not yet been worked out. (If you plan on attending, let me know and I’ll send you the details) If you’d like to send a card, their address is: PO Box 745 Rancho Santa Fe, CA 92067-0745 Shannon’s email is: shannondempsey@cox.net If I find out more information, I’ll pass it along. With Love, Liz

Congratulations to DJ Alto for winning the 2009 San Diego Open on the 2009 JOOLA North American Tour. In front of his hometown crowd, DJ won his first ever NATT tour event over Steven Wang 4-3. Did we also mention he is only 16? Thank you to all the participants and spectators! Story courtesy of NATT

Dear Members: Welcome Back.  We are open again!  Just want to bring you up to date.  We have a new league starting this Friday.  We have a new board member.  I want to clarify the training and table policy so there is no confusion.  The City has just posted their new fee schedule for comment which is scheduled to go into effect July 1, 2009. Earl & Brana will be running a league starting this Friday.  Sign ups are still being taken.  Fee is $25.  Team will consist of 3 people and will follow the Olympic format.  See Earl or Brana to sign up. Jr. Training will will have priority in the first two rows.  Five tables may be placed in rows 1, 4 & 5.  The middle two rows (2 & 3) will have four tables only.  We would like to accomodate as many people as possible while maintaining safety in play.  Please be courteous. The Board is happy to welcome Mark Adelman.  He will serve as the new treasurer.  Additionally, Bill Cooper has agreed to serve as Secretary and Priscilla Umel is now has the job of Member Relations and James Kahn is Vice-chair.  We appreciate Mark taking on this job.  Brana and Earl will continue to assist the treasurer in collecting fees and running the club.  The board considered a number of policies related to member fees.  The two modifications that were approved were that members can bring first time guests at no charge.  We want to encourage new people to join the club.  So if you have a friend that you would like to invite, their first visit will be free.  We also adopted a hardship policy.  If a person has financial or other difficulty paying the dues, the procedure is to fill out a hardship form  for a fee waiver.  Suresh K. has agreed to consider hardship waivers.  Confidential information can be submitted to Suresh for his consideration.  Brana, Earl or other board members can provide more detail. Lastly,  the City is raising the fees they charge the club and for use of all public facilities.  Initially, there will be a $600 charge to SDTTA.  The ongoing fees charged for purchasing extra hours is going to increase by 20%.   We anticipated this and the current fee structure will cover the extra expenses. However, fees charged by the City for Clinics and Tournaments will increase by more than 20%.  This may put in danger our NATT tournaments and other functions. There is still a chance that our hours will be modified next month in the on going financial crisis at the City.  There will be a hearing today at 2:00 at the Balboa Park Club.  and another meeting on April 1 at City Council.  Please contact me at jh4484@cox.net if you can be present at either of these meetings.  We are working hard to represent your interests and keep you informed. Jerry Harris, Chairman

Dear Members: The Spring league is now forming. It will have a different format. It will follow the Olympic team format. Check out the flyer by clicking here. Do not forget to sign up for the 4 star NATT tournament coming at the end of April. We have entry forms in the equipment room. If you are not a USATT member, the club offers half price membership.   Talk to any board member, Brana or Earl to get your application and discount. Jerry Harris Jerry Harris Chairman SDTTA

What: Thursday Club Rummage Sale Where:  The BPAC Description: The Thursday Club is having a rummage sale, so all activities have been canceled. From:03-07-2009 Until: 03-15-2009

Dear Members: We have experienced several challenges in the first two months of this year. We greatly appreciate your patience as the City works out their problems. The new hours go into effect this weekend. We will be playing again on Sundays from 12-4:30 pm. Saturday hours will be 10-3:30. We worked out a deal with the City and the Badminton club to purchase 9 hours on Saturday, Sunday and during the week. This may cost more than we originally expected especially since the City has announced that they are going to increase the hourly fee 20% in April. As most of you know, our long time treasurer, Neil, has resigned. To date we have been unsuccessful in finding a new treasurer. This leaves a huge gap in our program. At Neil’s suggestion, we are going to hire part time assistance treasurers that will be responsible for collecting dues and organizing other functions at the club. Brana Vlassic and Earl Altos will share the position. We urge you to cooperate with them and assist them in carrying out their duties. The dues for 2009 are $100 per year, $30 for Juniors and $100.00 per family. Daily rates are $5 for adults and $1 for juniors. We will establish a membership desk at the front of the club. Please ask for a receipt whenever you pay for your membership. All players will be expected to carry their membership cards or receipts for payment at all times when playing. Players that fail to bring their cards will be expected to pay the daily fee. We hope to do a better job of collecting daily fees so that we can keep membership dues as low as possible. Members that paid $50 previously are expected to pay the additional $50.00. If a member has a financial hardship, scholarships are available. Please speak to Brana, Earl, Angie or myself. The Board also voted to move the junior training back to the 1st two rows of the club. This will assist the collection process as the junior parents and other volunteer collectors will be manning the membership tables. The juniors have priority on the first two rows on Monday, Tuesday & Friday nights and also on Saturdays. Please be courteous when you are asked to move prior to the start of junior training. Lastly, a number of members expressed concern over the fee increase and want to make sure that the money is spent wisely. The board has approved a budget for 2009 (click here to view) . Given the uncertainties, we hope to meet or exceed the goals and objective set forth in this budget. The expected increased revenue is going to fund the purchase of the hours from the City, the 50th year Gala and also the assistant treasurers positions while maintaining our other member services (leagues, tournaments, web site, clinics etc…). We were forced to make cuts in other areas. Unfortunately, the club’s investments suffered along with everyone elses in the recent and ongoing financial turmoil. Please feel free to contact me if you questions or concerns regarding club activities at jh4484@cox.net. Jerry Harris Chairman SDTTA