John P. Ware elected FMTC President (1975-1977).Paddle courts changed to all aluminum

John Ware (1921-1999) was born in Chestnut Hill, MA and was a graduate of the Brooks School and Princeton University. He served as a first lieutenant in World War II as well as in the Korean War where he received the Bronze Star.

Before his retirement in 1987, he was director of industrial sales and professional development at John Wiley & Sons, publishers, and served on the national committee of the American Society for Training and Development

The wooded paddle courts were always difficult to maintain and the club began experimenting with an aluminum deck in the early 1970s. After some trial usage, and with the Board anguishing over the cost, the decision was made during Ware’s term to convert all the courts to all-aluminum. The new courts now had heaters under them to melt snow and ice and this extended the available playing time.

Ware served as APTA President from 1961-1963 where he was a great supporter of developing junior players. He was known as the game’s historian and was inducted into the APTA Hall of Fame in 1995