Mells steps down after 21 years of holding court / Tennis

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, May 8, 2018

Thanks to a Oswald Baldwin, Horace Mells got hooked on tennis.

Mells, who has coached the Oak Harbor High School boys and girls tennis teams the past 21 years, is retiring this spring. Before moving to Oak Harbor, he coached three years at Coupeville High School.

“In the summer of 1976 while serving a tour of duty in Hawaii, my friend (Baldwin), who had taken some tennis lessons and needed someone to practice with, introduced me to tennis,” Mells said.

Because of Mells’ friend, hundreds of Oak Harbor High School athletes have also been introduced to tennis and Mells’ quiet, thoughtful manner.

“Tennis is a lifetime sport which is reserved for ladies and gentlemen,” Mells said. “I just hope the athletes remember the lessons learned and apply them to their everyday lives, because it really helped me.”

Mells grew up in Arkansas and graduated from Forrest City High School in 1964. After receiving a draft notice, he enlisted in the army in 1965. He worked in the telecommunications field and retired as a master sergeant in 1986.

Mells began his journey in coaching when he received a teaching certificate after attending the Dennis Van der Meer Tennis University in 1980.

In the early years, he primarily played in tournaments, only occasionally coaching and teaching. He did establish two military teams in Baumholder and Zweibrucken, Germany, and coached them to team championships.

In 1995, he stopped by an Oak Harbor High School boys tennis practice, hoping to find a player to hit with.

“That particular practice was unorganized and I did not see or recognize the coach,” he said. “From what I observed, I thought the players deserved better. That’s why I started coaching.”

He added that he is retiring “for the same reason.”

“At the beginning of my coaching at OHHS, I was active in taking players to state from 1999 through 2004, but only once since in 2010,” he said. “I feel like my stories are outdated and the players should have a new face with new stories and new prospectives.”

Oak Harbor players, unlike most in the Western Conference, do not have access to indoor courts or a certified tennis instructor unless they are willing to commute to Bellingham or Everett.

Despite those disadvantages, Mells led the Oak Harbor High School’s girls team to the conference title in 2001. It’s that crown he considers his greatest accomplishment.

He said his tenure at Oak Harbor High School was made easier by the help and support of athletic director Nicki Luper and athletic secretary JoAnn Wickers.

“(They are) the best in the entire league; I cannot imagine anyone being better,” he said.

Mells said he enjoyed his 24 years of high school coaching, and he has “been fortunate to work with so many exceptional students athletes that are now, or will become, model citizens, making outstanding contributions to society.”

I guess, in a way, we have Oswald Baldwin to thank for that as well.