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SUFFERN, N.Y. – Frances Symmonds Osei, a resident of Suffern, died Sunday, June 19. She was 64.
Born on June 17,1952, in St. Michael, Barbados, she was the youngest of six children of Frederick McDonald Symmonds and Mignonne Symmonds.
After the death of her mother, she moved to New York at the age of 12 and has remained there ever since. In 1972, she began her nursing career at Elmhurst General Hospital, where she met her husband, Clem.
In the mid-90’s, she embarked on a second career in tennis.. With passion, dedication, wisdom and nurturing, she has served as the teacher, coach, leader, visionary and rock of the Town of Ramapo Tennis Program.
In 2005 she officially took over as the director of the Town of Ramapo Tennis Center. During her tenure, she ran successful year round tennis programs for thousands of children, adults and seniors, provided leadership for numerous employees, coordinated numerous impactful events, and brought tennis into the lives of many underprivileged students from our community and beyond.
She was an avid tennis player and iserved as the vice president of the United States Tennis Association’s Eastern Section.
She became a well-known national and international member of the USTA and Professional Tennis Registry circles, particularly for her devotion to community tennis.
She chaired the USTA Eastern Community Development Committee for several terms and was a long-time member of the National Community Development Committee. She was named Volunteer of the Year for the PTR in 2015 and was named Eastern Tennis Woman of the Year in 2015.
Arrangements were handled by Scarr Funeral Home, 160 Orange Ave., Suffern,
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