My Perspective: Help sought for pickleball article

By Jim Palmer

There is a lot that goes into each Senior Perspective. We have classified ads, poems, recipes, jokes, and display advertisements. But the heart and soul of this publication is its content. It is what drives everything else. Without good stories, people wouldn’t pick it up.

We have been blessed with loyal readers who are always looking out for us. They are always keeping an eye out for story ideas.

The rapidly growing sport of pickleball is similar to tennis and table tennis. Stock photo

A traditional story that we write involves a person, a couple, or a group of people. We interview these people, take some photos, and put the story together. But there are some stories that are trickier to do. For example... In the last few years, I have received several notes from people looking for a story to be done on their Pickleball club/organization. The problem with doing a story on a specific club is it promotes what they are doing and leaves out all the others -- and there are a lot of communities doing something right now -- Some are just starting, some are building courts, some are forming clubs, and some have well-established clubs, courts, and tournaments in place and are fine-tuning them.

But doing a story on Pickleball makes a lot of sense for Senior Perspective. It is the fastest growing sport in the midwest, it is intergenerational, it is helping seniors stay active, and it is helping seniors stay engaged socially. The hard part is giving all the Pickleball clubs some attention and not just spotlighting one or two.

So how do we write this story and give everyone a chance to say what they are up to? Let’s try something.

I have made up a form (below), and I am asking that one member of each pickleball club/organization fill this out and send it back to me.(either mail or email). I will write a story on Pickleball, and I will include this information in the story. That way, we can tell people about the sport and also let them know how they can get started or where they can go to compete against others if they want to expand their horizons.

Pickleball, as many people know by now, is a sport that is sorta like a cross between tennis and table tennis. It has a small court, paddles, and includes up to four players.

This is a bit of an experiment. Since our newspaper is distributed to hundreds of communities and many communities are doing something with Pickleball right now, this could get interesting (and challenging). But that’s OK. I’m always up for a good challenge. This is a one-time article, so if you have information to send, now is the time to do it.

This form and photos should be back on my desk by May 1. I will write the story in early May so it can appear in the June edition.

Thanks for your help with this story. If this works out well, I may try this format again for other stories.

Drawing Winners

Each March, we have a drawing. Everyone who has submitted a poem, recipe, photo, or joke is included in the drawing. Here are the winners from the last year and their prizes:

Dilmun Caroon of Grove City - $150

Mary Jo Erickson of Dalton - Subscription

Mary Jo Pohlen of Janesville - Subscription

Lynette Nelson of Foreston - Cookbook

Gerri Chapa of East Grand Forks - Cookbook

Thanks to all those who submitted something to Senior Perspective in the last year. We couldn’t have done it without you! Next year’s drawing starts now.