PLAINFIELD, Wis. — Coaches and mentors at Five Star Tennis Center in Plainfield, Illinois, are reflecting on the life of 10-year-old Kate Schmidt, one of three children who died after a boating incident over the Fourth of July weekend.
Schmidt passed away along with her cousins Caleb and Abigail Oswald after storms swept over Geneva Lake and caused their boat to capsize on July 3.
For those at Five Star Tennis, where Schmidt spent five to six days a week, her absence has left a deep void in a tight-knit community of families, coaches, and friends.
Watch: Tennis community remembers 10-year-old who passed in Geneva Lake tragedy
Dan Brown and Robin Henders, who worked with Schmidt at the tennis center and know her family well, described her as someone who stood out both on and off the court.
"I still remember her saying, 'Great job! Good shot! You were great today.' She was like a cheerleader, always had a positive attitude, and just kind of like this little, you know, ray of sunlight when she walked in the door," Brown and Henders said.
They watched Schmidt grow in the sport and said her character was just as impressive as her game.
"I was always extremely impressed that she could be in this ultra-competitive world and be known as a kind kid. That's very special," Brown and Henders said.
Her coaches Aaron Rusnak and Shatavisa Ghosh remembered Schmidt's personality as one that balanced competitiveness with joy.
"It's all smiles and how she would like be very sassy. Yes, and she had yeah a positive sassiness, would you say? Yeah," Rusnak and Ghosh said.
They said Schmidt also taught them something about resilience.
"Even if she made a really like easy mistake, like yes, she would be mad, but then she would laugh about it, and I think that's a great quality to have as a as a person, as a tennis player, to laugh at your own mistakes, and then to just kind of bounce back from it," Rusnak and Ghosh said.
For those who coached her, the memories of Schmidt extend well beyond the tennis court.
"When I would see her in the hallway, she'd come run up to me and give me a hug, and you know, it just-it's nice to have that relationship with kids, not just on the court, but see them carry it off the court," Rusnak and Ghosh said.
Kate's family has established a GoFundMe in her honor.
Donate here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/honoring-kate-schmidts-legacy
