Tennis court honors longtime community instructor

The first court at Community Park in Chico honors Jerry Brayton. (Image: Kathryn Reed)

Jerry Brayton

This needs to happen more often—honoring someone before they are dead.

This is exactly what took place at the end of April when court No. 1 at Community Park in Chico became the Jerry Brayton Tennis Court.

The sign says: “Honoring Jerry’s 24 years of dedicated service to the CARD and tennis community.”

CARD stands for Chico Area Recreation District.

Hardly a day went by when Brayton wasn’t on the court giving lessons to kids, adults, groups, and solo players.

I believe my nieces and nephew who grew in Chico, who are all now in their 30s, took lessons from him.

It was Brayton who introduced me to the group of guys I play with on a regular basis. This was when I first moved to Chico. I showed up at the public courts hoping to find some people to hit with. That’s always worked for me in the past. Worked this go-round too.

I never took lessons from Brayton, so I don’t really know how he was as an instructor. He had to be doing something right to last that many years.

Today, his body is riddled with arthritis, necessitating him to use a walker. This was a surprise to me because I had seen him on the court earlier this year. Officially, he retired from teaching for CARD last summer.

His enthusiasm for the sport has never been questioned.

Nearly 100 people showed up to honor Brayton. How great it was that this community celebration for someone who has been so much a part of Chico tennis took place while Brayton could enjoy it, so he could tell stories and hear what others had to say about him and the impact he had on their lives.