Louis J. Hutchinson II, tennis coach, psychotherapist, 79

Louis J. Hutchinson II was an ace on and off the tennis court. You’d be hard-pressed to find a member of the tennis community who didn’t know his name.

The Freeport resident educated hundreds of students of all ages, ethnicities, abilities and disabilities in Long Island and New York. He died on July 7 at a hospital in Washington, DC, of ​​multiple myeloma and cardiac amyloidosis. He was 79.

“Throughout his life, he always believed that with hard work, perseverance, patience and passion, anything was possible. None of that more than at home and on the tennis court,” said Hutchinson’s son, the Rev. Louis J. Hutchinson III of Upper Marlboro, Maryland. “I gave him his last rites as a minister and prayed with him through the transition. I’ll never forget that moment.”

Louis Johnny Hutchinson II was born in Charleston, South Carolina, on April 16, 1944. The oldest of 11 children, he and his family moved from Charleston to the Bronx when he was 8 years old. From a young age, Hutchinson excelled academically and pursued a passion for baseball, which was later followed by a love for basketball.

Hutchinson met his future wife Roberta, who lived across the street, when he was 16 years old. They married in June 1965 and raised three children.

In 1968, Hutchinson attended SUNY Old Westbury, where he studied philosophy. She earned a master’s degree in philosophy and social work from Fordham University in 1980 and shortly thereafter was licensed as a psychotherapist.

During his university years, Hutchinson was introduced to tennis. Moving with his family to Freeport in 1975, Hutchinson began his career as a counselor at the Lower East Side Counseling Center in Manhattan, a year before joining the USTennis Association, which would become a part of him for the rest of his life.

“My father taught tennis from his youth until last summer at the age of 78. He taught from the age of 4 to students his age,” said his son. “His coaching background came through in all of his teaching relationships. He was very involved; it was so much more than tennis to him.”

In 1982, Hutchinson worked in Glen Cove for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where he established and delivered various counseling and sports programs. In 1990, he began offering individual and family counseling at the Alliance Counseling Center in Hempstead while teaching tennis as a USTA instructor to those who could not afford lessons.

Corey Aronin of Oceanside met Hutchinson in 1992 and knew him as a teacher and eventually as a friend. “He was a respected, wonderful person who was also a well-educated tennis coach and competitor,” Aronin said. ”

Naseem Sadik of Malverne recalled helping Hutchinsonrun’s tennis camps and programs and said his coach and friend “had the biggest smile, but an even bigger heart.”

During his athletic career, Hutchinson II coached more than 30 teams that won state and regional championships and took them to USTA National events around the country, his son said. Many of Hutchinson’s players went on to regional and national rankings, play college tennis, and some played professionally.

“What was most important to Dad was that he instilled confidence in others and impacted the lives of those he taught and coached,” said his son.

In addition to his wife and son, Hutchinson is survived by his daughters, Shane’t Hutchinson and the Rev. Kim Hutchinson, both of Bowie, Maryland; four grandchildren; and over 100 nieces and nephews. The funeral was held on July 22 at Malverne Bridge Church, followed by a private burial.