Hall of Famer Charlie Lane passes away

MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Huntingdon College family is mourning one of its own today.

Huntingdon alum, head men's tennis coach and Hall of Famer Charlie Lane passed away Thursday morning in a local hospital. He was 65.

"It's a sad day. Anytime you lose a family member, it's tough," Huntingdon athletic director Mike Turk said. "But, anyone who knew Charlie knows he would want everyone to continue about their business with a smile on their face. Anytime you saw Charlie, he had a smile on his face and tried to make sure you did as well.

"He's a guy that never had a bad day in his life and he wasn't going to let you have one. He wanted to brighten your day and make your experience a little better."

Lane courageously battled cancer for a little more than two years. He was hospitalized in early January for an unrelated illness to which he succumbed.

Funeral arrangements had not been finalized on Thursday afternoon but will be announced.

Lane was known for his sense of humor and good nature. Always quick with a joke or a funny story, Lane continued to keep his sense of humor even as his health began to fail him.

"It was inspiring to watch how he handled things these past couple of years. He had this terrible disease, but he attacked it with more vigor and optimism than anyone I've seen," said Kent Hagan, who played for Lane at Huntingdon from 2007-2010 and is scheduled to graduate from medical school at UAB in May.

"He fought his sickness the same way he lived, with humor and optimism," Hagan said. "He is one of the most amazing people I've had the pleasure of knowing. I hope none of us ever have to go through what he did, but if I ever find myself fighting a similar battle, I hope I can approach it in the same way he did."

Turk recalled a recent visit he and Huntingdon baseball coach D.J. Conville made to see Lane in the hospital. It was the last time Turk saw Lane.

"We left the hospital with our stomachs hurting from laughing at Charlie's stories," Turk said. "Think about it, here was a guy fighting for his life. Instead of wallowing in pity, he was as upbeat and positive as he was any other day I've been around him."

Lane had several passions. He loved spending time with his son, Jake, and watching him compete in sports. He enjoyed hunting and when he wasn't hunting, he was often talking about hunting. And of course there was his profession for more than 40 years, tennis.

Lane's impact on the tennis community was recently recognized with his selection to the USTA Alabama Tennis Foundation Hall of Fame. Lane was to be inducted later this month. He was inducted into the Huntingdon College Hall of Fame in 1998, was an Alabama Tennis Association Career Achievement Award winner and in 2014 was honored by the Blue-Gray Tennis Association with the Jim Wilson Jr. Giving Back with Grace Award.

A native of Sylacauga, Lane was a four-year player for Huntingdon at No. 1 singles and led the Hawks to their first conference championship. As a senior in 1971, he was named an Outstanding College Athlete of America.

After graduation, Lane spent 20 years working for the City of Montgomery Parks and Recreation Department. One of his first assignments was to help set up O'Connor Tennis Center. After his time as Tennis Director for the City of Montgomery, Lane remained a prominent tennis instructor in the city.

From 2004-2006, he coached at the high school level at St. James. He led the boys to a third-place finish in the state tournament in 2004 and 2005 and guided the girls to state runner-up finish in 2006.

He returned to his alma mater following the 2006 season. In eight seasons, he led Huntingdon to a 91-48 record, three Great South Athletic Conference tournament championships and one regular-season title. In their first season in the USA South Athletic Conference in 2014, Lane's Hawks were 13-4 and reached the conference semifinals.

"For the last 40 years, he has been tennis in Montgomery," Hagan said. "He started O'Connor when he was right out of college and when you look at what he did at the high school and college level, it's amazing.

"His first year coaching at Huntingdon was my freshman year and we were a rough bunch. The first year, we were middle of the pack. But by the second and third years, we were back-to-back conference champions. When we won the first conference title, we beat a team that had won seven straight conference championships. What he was able to do in such a short time, I don't know if anyone else could have done it."

From 2007-2012 as members of the GSAC, Lane was twice named conference Coach of the Year and led the Hawks to five straight appearances in the conference tournament finals. He helped produce one conference Player of the Year, four Freshmen of the Year and 13 All-Freshmen team members.

In the GSAC and USA South, Lane coached a combined 22 all-conference players and 17 academic all-conference performers.

"The job he did at Huntingdon was fantastic. He resurrected the program and made it competitive," Turk said. "If you ever watch his teams play, you see that competitive spirit in them. They scratch and claw for every point. That's a great representation of Charlie. That's how he was as a player and how he was in life."