Indiana University East and Richmond Parks and Recreation will dedicate and name the newly renovated tennis courts at Glen Miller Park at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 15. The courts will be known as Kyle Tom Courts in recognition of the philanthropist’s generosity to the university and community.

The dedication includes a ribbon cutting, ice cream from Ullery’s Homemade Ice-Cream and the G101.3 FM Lightning Rod will provide music. The event is open to the community.

Kyle Tom Courts in Glen Miller Park

Following the dedication, the IU East Red Wolves men’s tennis team will play Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology at 5 p.m. The match is free and open to the community.

To resurface the tennis courts, IU East paid a $30,000 user fee in 2016 to help the parks department improve the courts. The campus used Kyle Tom’s recent contributions to the IU East athletic department to pay the fee. As a result, the courts have been refurbished and new windscreens have been installed. To help capitalize on the investment, the Richmond Parks Department made other improvements to the courts such as repairs to the outer fence, the removal of old storage buildings, new signage and grounds maintenance.

Tom, a native of Richmond and realtor with Lingle Real Estate, said the donation to IU East is a way to give back to the community and help support the local attractions and city assets.

“From the moment Jason (Troutwine) mentioned the collaboration I thought it would be an amazing opportunity to give back not only to the youth of our community, who are our future, but also a great way to enhance our parks department and share some of the blessings that Richmond has provided me. I couldn’t be happier with the outcome,” Tom said.

Jason Troutwine, vice chancellor for the Office of External Affairs, said IU East is proud to work with Tom and the Richmond Parks Department.

“This is an exciting project. Obviously, this is a big deal for the IU East tennis program but these improvements will benefit many people in the community as well,” Troutwine said. “Without Kyle’s support and the collaboration with the Richmond Parks Department, this project would not have been possible.”

Park Superintendent Denise Retz said it has been 20 years since the tennis courts had been surfaced at Glen Miller Park.

“This has been a wonderful partnership with IU East and Kyle Tom and just shows our community how much these two entities believe in the park system,” Retz said. “Several members of our community use these courts including IU East, Seton and tennis enthusiasts of all ages, and it’s a great recreational opportunity for our community. We realize this and want to do all we can to keep it a great place for all who use it. We have been working on new bleachers, new nets and other improvements alongside the improvements of the surfacing and the branding of the windscreens. I believe together we’ve made a lasting impact.”

The courts were renovated by Rick’s Tennis and Basketball Courts Inc. of Indianapolis in October 2016. With the spring tennis season, the April 15 date was the first available to dedicate the courts.