Forster found his passion through tennis

Feature story was written by Andrea Ledvina for CUWFalcons.com

The 2016-17 season was a historic one for Concordia Wisconsin's Men's Tennis program, as they set a new school record with 20 victories and captured the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference regular season and tournament titles. One of the key pieces to that season's success was James Forster, who showed a passion both on and off the court. The success that year helped give notice to the tennis program and the University, boosting player involvement for years to come. Forster and his team set the bar high, knowing that any player can succeed as a Falcon given the right attitude and commitment.

Head coach Steve Anschutz says, "James was one of the first true standout recruits to play for CUW and he possessed all of this talent, giving his all to the program here. He has set a new standard for our new players for when they graduate and move beyond campus to real life."

This fall Forster is assisting the Milwaukee Tennis Classic, one of the largest collegiate tournaments in the country. The tournament has recruited players from the NCAA Division I level across the country, competing as individuals in the tournament. He earned the title of Tennis Operations Manager, assisting in a variety of capacities.

The underlying goal for the tournament is to help underprivileged students within the Milwaukee area with their education and obtaining scholarships for the future. The foundation the tournament supports is Al Hurvis Adamm. The man who runs the foundation currently works at a Ford company, utilizing numerous technical skills and is one of the main reasons the foundation works to get students to the technical schools to gain hands-on experience. The Foundation provides insight on technical school training, working closely with the Milwaukee Area Technical College (MATC). Additionally, the foundation helps get Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) students to MATC, helping them find jobs later on in their career paths.

All of the players that will be at the Milwaukee Tennis Classic will be hosted by the families who are members at these country clubs, so the individuals competing will not have to worry about any expenses during the tournament. This year the collegiate players will be competing at the Western Racket Club and The Town Club, both in Milwaukee.

Forster found the Milwaukee Tennis Classic and foundation through Charles (Chas) Mulcahy, who is a Marquette University alum, and is one of the many connections he has made throughout his years with tennis. Mulcahy will be working with the functional pieces of the tournament. Marquette held the Milwaukee Tennis Classic final on their campus this past weekend.

As Forster states, "Chaz is Milwaukee tennis. If you have ever played tennis in Milwaukee you have probably met him. He represents the tournament and all that it embodies. He is the tournament."

The Northbrook, Ill, worked as a site director, helping run the tournament matches at these sites. He has had many opportunities that have opened his horizons to internships these past years. Forster has found a new path being involved with nonprofit organizations and has received his associate degree from a local community college in the area before transferring to Concordia Wisconsin. Currently, he is pursuing his degree in Economics and Finance, taking the semester off to help with the Milwaukee Tennis Classic and the other tournaments in the area with the foundation.

He really accounts a lot of his success with these foundations back to Concordia Wisconsin's mission statement. The University's mission statement says to serve students with Christ in the church and in the world, and he does exactly this with helping encourage tennis players around his hometown and around the Milwaukee area. He continues to motivate athletes to try tennis since it is one of the few sports you can play at any age; requiring a racket, tennis balls and a court. Everything CUW preaches in its values really motivated him to find his calling for the future. Upon finding this foundation, he says he found something that he would throw all of himself into, giving 110 percent.

Forster claims that tennis has become his passion and wants to find students who love the sport as much as he did. He is hoping to help grow the game of tennis in the greater Milwaukee area. He has been one of the many through the area pushing the sport and showing schools the success it has had around the districts.

A few weeks prior, Forster worked for the Milwaukee Junior Adult Tournament for high school students. The finalists of this tournament attended and watched the Milwaukee Tennis Classic and the foundation thinks it will be good to keep the students motivated to continue their tennis careers. The Junior Adult tournament takes players from local country clubs and combines them with children through the Milwaukee Tennis Education Tournament.

To view results from this past weekends tournament you can either download the Tennis Sticker app or go on their website www.milwaukeetennis.org. There are also social media platforms advertising the tournament as well.