Unity2010ARV5:Layout 1
11/29/10
6:50 AM
Page 14
THE ROBERT LEROY SCHOLARSHIP:
A Professional Match
The word “match” can have two almost completely
opposite meanings. In tennis, a match is competitive.
At the Unity Foundation, a match is cooperative.
Both meanings are applicable to the Robert LeRoy
Scholarship.
Bob LeRoy knew a good tennis match when he
played or coached one. Bob possessed Master’s level
ability as a player,
and if there was a
master’s level for
coaching, he would
be ranked there, too.
As tennis coach at
LaPorte High School,
he was a legend. He
coached the statechampion team and singles player (Dan Bigg) in
1968, and was named Indiana Tennis Coach of the Year in 1980 and 1989. In
1980, he was nominated for National Tennis Coach of
the Year. In 1989, suffering from the cancer that would
claim his life the following season, he coached the
boys team to second place in the state. Bob was inducted into the Indiana Tennis Coaches Hall of Fame
in 1992, and the Hubner Athletic Hall of Fame, for
LaPorte High School coaches and athletes, in 2010.
several options until someone suggested the new Unity
Foundation. Beth said, “I didn’t have any trouble
working with Unity. Maggi and I sat down and I said
this is how I would like it to be. We drew up the papers, and everyone approved
it, and we went for it.”
Beth explained, “The criteria is simple—all you have
to do is letter in tennis
while at LaPorte High
School.” With the help
of family, Beth reviews
all the applications.
Since the fund’s inception, she has usually been able to give
out two scholarships per year,
one for a male and one for a female.
Empathetic coaches and teachers such as Bob have a
powerful influence on the lives of their students. “I
think any sport or activity in school can help you in
life,” Beth said. “It’s the concentration, the striving to
become better, that you use later.”
Elizabeth LeRoy shared her husband’s desire to always
put the players and students first. During Bob’s
coaching years, Beth said, “I was chief cook and
bottle washer. I did the washing and repairing.
Are you a fan of
One year I made warmup suits for the entire
girls’ tennis team.” Even with four young chileducation after high school?
dren, Beth attended most matches.
Of helping young people to get a
The other match came about when Bob’s
cousin David Parcel, then athletic director at
the school, suggested that Beth start a scholarship fund in Bob’s memory. She was unimpressed by
12
UNITY FOUNDATION
OF
good start on life? Of giving older students a
second chance for college? Help us build
the existing scholarship funds in Unity
or start your own!
LAPORTE COUNTY | COMMUNITY REPORT 2009 - 10