By Setarreh Massihzadegan
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

Table tennis has long been an establishment at Brooksby, but it wasn’t until this summer that players finally got the chance to compete with another Erickson community.

The first annual Olympics between Peabody-based Brooksby and its sister community, Hingham-based Linden Ponds, marked a chance for members of the two table tennis groups at Brooksby to embrace new competition.

“It’s really more exciting than just doing it here,” says Barbara Crowley, one of a few table tennis players who went to Linden Ponds to represent Brooksby. “It was just a nice experience to be over there, see their situation, and play some new people.”

Healthy competition
Crowley beat three women in games at Brooksby that qualified her to compete in the Olympics at Linden Ponds, so she was surprised to find herself playing against men when she got there. Even so, Crowley came away with a bronze medal, while Linden Ponds’ Bob Harris took home the gold and Brooksby’s Bart Rogers won the silver.

Crowley began playing table tennis at Brooksby with the group formed five years ago by Gil Collamore, a longtime table tennis enthusiast who has been playing the sport for 15 years at a nearby club. Collamore’s group meets three days a week to practice doubles.

“It’s for any age at all, but I think it’s great for people our age,” Collamore says of the sport.

Social spin
Collamore and his crew of about a dozen regular players entertain themselves and the spectators who come to watch their games. Most players agree, as much as table tennis has fitness advantages, game time is also a social event.

“You get to know people and you like them—it’s social,” says Jim Kusch, who leads the second table tennis  group, at Brooksby’s Kingsbury Clubhouse. Kusch also regularly ventures over to play with Collamore’s group in Town Centre.

“I think one of the best things is, it’s men and women,” adds Claire Johnson, who plays regularly in Town Centre. “It’s good fellowship.”