Harriett Hulbert

Harriett Hulbert
05/22/1933 - 04/06/2023
Harriett Susan Peterson Hulbert passed away peacefully at her home in Houston TX, surrounded by family members on the evening of April 6, 2023, finally succumbing after a long battle with chronic lung disease.
Harriett was born in Chicago IL to Mary and Harold Peterson. They resided in a modest one-bedroom apartment with her sister Cynthia Peterson (1937-2022) in the Rogers Park District of Chicago. Harriett's strong high school academics resulted in a scholarship to attend nearby Northwestern University; she graduated in 1954 with a bachelor's degree in biology. Following graduation, in 1954 she married Richard C. Hulbert, who had also attended Northwestern. Between 1954 and 1969 she and Richard moved multiple times across the United States and raised four children: Richard Jr., Susan, Ann, and Michael. During this interval she taught at both elementary and high schools. In 1969 the Hulberts moved to Houston, where Harriett lived for the rest of her life.
Harriett first began playing recreational tennis in 1966 and soon became passionate for this increasingly popular sport. To satisfy this obsession, upon moving to Houston, the Hulberts immediately joined the Houston Racquet Club. She retired from playing tennis in 2005, but remained physically active by swimming, walking, and biking well into her 80s. All her children were taught the game, and her younger daughter Ann proved to be a "natural", becoming a nationally ranked junior player and an NCAA All-American. The two travelled to many tournaments across the country. Too nervous to watch her own daughter play, she began to volunteer at the tournament desk. She rose from such basic tasks as checking in players, assigning them courts, and providing them a new can of tennis balls for their match to eventually organizing and overseeing entire tournaments for the Houston Tennis Association (HTA) and the US Tennis Association. She became the President of the HTA (1980-1981), then its Assistant Executive Director (1984-1986), and finally Executive Director (1986-2007). Even after her official retirement, she continued to advise and mentor HTA officials. During her tenure at the HTA, the two most significant tournaments in Houston that she ran annually were the National Senior Women's Clay Court Championships and the Coca Cola Open, which for many years had the largest number of participants of any tennis tournament in the world. She also served on many committees with the Texas and US Tennis Associations. She received many awards for her service to the sport of tennis, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Texas Section of the USTA and enshrinement into the Texas Tennis Hall of Fame.
After stepping down from her leadership role of the HTA, Harriett lent her time and energy to volunteering at the Harris County Spring Branch-Memorial Library and Memorial Assistance Ministries, membership in the Memorial Forest Women's Club, and serving on the board of directors of the Memorial Forest Club. Beyond these activities she was a life-long reader, enjoyed listening to classical music, gardening, watching PBS and TCM, and taking her children and grandchildren to the swimming pool.
Harriett is survived by her four children - Richard Hulbert Jr., Susan Hulbert (Ned Moan), Ann Hopper (John), Michael Hulbert (Lisa) - nine grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. A celebration of her life will be held at the Houston Racquet Club on April 21 at 1 PM. In lieu of flowers, please make donations in her memory to either Memorial Assistance Ministries or the newly established Harriett Hulbert HTA College Scholarship Fund.