Determination, it is defined as a firm or fixed intention to achieve a desired end in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. To achieve any great goal you have to overcome obstacles and stay true to your dream.
Tory Painter, Sinclair Community College’s #1 tennis player has already gone through major issues that made her progress difficult, but she is determined enough to move through them and achieve her dreams.
Eleven months ago a major obstacle came when Tory tore her ACL.
“The situation was horrifying,” Painter said. “I woke up at the emergency room with a brace on my leg after the surgery.”
They took a piece of her hamstring and attached it to her knee to so it would be strong and make a new ACL when it heals.
“I knew I had a long recovery ahead of me,” Painter said. “But I have the type of personality to accept any challenge.”
Painter has always been a hard worker, growing up she would practice around five days a week for a minimum of two or three hours a day.
She was always surrounded by tennis, her mother Karen was a tennis pro and her father Charlie is one of the top tennis coaches in the Midwest.
“My father started off as a football coach,” Painter said. “But when he met my mom, she introduced him to tennis and started to appreciate the sport.”
Her father eventually made the switch to coaching tennis and has been very successful, he has over 500 victories and is in three different Hall Of Fames.
“Growing up I was always around my dad’s Wright State tennis teams,” Painter said. “That is what got me started, it’s how I fell in love with tennis.”
With the support of her family and practice Painter grew into a very good player. She started playing around four, then playing and winning tournaments around seven. At fourteen, she would win tournaments in the eighteen year old are bracket.
“When I started winning big tournaments it became a huge confidence boost,” Painter said. “To know you can compete and win against top level players is a great feeling, it made me want work harder because I knew I could become better.”
She attended Centerville High school where she became one of the best players in the state, and would play against her father who by this time was the coach at Centerville High School.
“I’m an all around player that likes to be aggressive,” Painter said “One of my weapons is my serve, which has been clocked at over 100 miles per hour.”
When the ACL injury happened, she went right back to work as soon as possible. So far while playing for Sinclair she has not lost a match.
“I have been doing physical training for the past two months at Kettering Health Center,” Painter said. I have had to learn how to divide time between school, at least three days of training, practice with the team, and time with friends.”
Painter described herself as a people person who ‘likes to do everything from just hanging out at Starbucks to going on trips and attending sporting events.’
“We can just go out, do anything, and make it a fun time,” Painter said. “I love my friends and family.”
Painter tells how lucky she is to be with her family because she is adopted from Romania. Her mother had three failed adoptions in the U.S. and ended up flying out to Romania with a friend to adopt.
“Romania is a very poor country,” Painter said. “I would not have had the opportunities over there as I have here.”
Her mother became very ill in Romania and on the last day before she was set to leave adopted Painter and her brother.
“My birth mother lived in a village and the day she had us my mother wanted to make sure all of the papers were signed immediately because they were scared that she would not have the chance to adopt us.
When the children were brought to America they were seen as the ‘miracle babies’ and many people wanted to see them and interview Painters parents.
“Big talk shows like Oprah wanted to see our family,” Painter said. “But my parents decided against it because they wanted to be careful that the Romanian government did not try and take us away.”
Painter was brought to American doctors so she could be vaccinated and they noticed that her feet pointed inward as a child.
“In America something like that is not a big deal,” Painter said. “But over there it is common for people to see that as a sign of retardation, and I may off had my feet cut off. A lot of times I wonder how I got so lucky.”
Painter says that all of her experiences have taught her great life lessons and she is ready for more.
“I have learned to always work hard and most importantly keep a positive attitude,” Painter said. “My life has been one great rollercoaster ride.”