Share the Fun

Mary Crusius, 92, Senior Games of the Pines

At 92 years old, Mary Crusius is having fun playing the sports she loves and sharing the sports she loves with other people. Mary has been a Senior Games participant for over 25 years, playing tennis, table tennis, pickleball, & track and field. “Give me a racket or paddle and something to hit and I'm a happy camper!” she says. 

Mary says she has enjoyed growing older because it has brought her opportunities she didn’t have when she was younger. “These later years, people think it's all negative growing older, but at any age, you have positive and you have negative aspects,” she says. “No age is perfect, and at this age one of the wonderful perks is that I'm able to compete in Senior Games.” When she was growing up, competitive sports weren’t available for girls. “I'm so grateful for Senior Games because now I am actually able to play. And now I'm 92 and I'm hoping to play next year at Nationals!”

Mary started playing tennis 30 years ago, when she took some recreation classes, and she immediately fell in love with the sport. “The minute I hit that first ball I was hooked!” she says, “I was playing tennis whenever I had the opportunity.” 

Table Tennis was the one sport Mary had been able to play in her youth, when she and her friends would play in the basement of their church. “I moved to Southern Pines and was pestering the Senior Center director about table tennis because I remember how much fun I had,” she says. When a few other participants showed interest in table tennis, Mary was asked to start an evening program. “I said absolutely sign me up! When do you want me?”

Mary was introduced to Pickleball about 10 years ago. She was on the tennis courts when she heard the noise of a Pickleball hitting the court. “They handed me a paddle and again, I was hooked!” She liked Pickleball so much she became a Pickleball Ambassador. She wanted everyone else to have as much fun as she was having.  “I started a lot of groups and clubs and gave several clinics because I wanted to share the fun. If you keep it to yourself it's meaningless, but if you share it, that's what it's all about,” she says. In addition to being a Pickleball Ambassador, Mary is also a longtime Senior Games Ambassador for Senior Games in the Pines.

Mary says she enjoys Senior Games “Because it's fun. if something isn't fun in the way of sports then you're not doing it right!” She enjoys going to State Finals and seeing her friends year after year. “It’s like camp,” she says. “You haven’t seen some of the people in a year, so there’s a lot to catch up on. And of course, she likes competing. “It's a thrill, it really is. I have so much fun winning, and losing as well. What's nice about Senior Games is that it is competitive, but it's friendly competition and you're always there for your friends.”

Mary has also participated in multiple National Senior Games. Most recently, she took home three gold medals at the 2019 National Senior Games in Albuquerque. Two for Pickleball, and one for Table Tennis.

And, of course, she had a lot of fun along the way.