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Helen Proctor and Garry Morehouse were
inducted into the Midland Hall of Fame on
Sept. 29 in the builder category,
for their work in developing the
Midland Area Pickleball Club
and four public outdoor courts.
Photo by Gisele Winton Sarvis/
Metroland.
Midland the First in
Canada to Induct Pickleball
into its Sports Hall of Fame
Pickleball builders Helen Proctor and Garry
Morehouse are the newest inductees into Midland
Sports Hall of Fame.
Pickleball has been inducted into a Canadian Sports Hall
of Fame for the first time in history. On Sept. 29, the 2018
Midland Sports Hall of Fame inducted Garry Morehouse and
Helen Proctor for their work in founding the Midland Area
Pickleball Club and getting four outdoor courts built at Tiffin
Park on a former tennis court.
“The reason we’re excited about getting inducted into
the Hall of Fame is it’s giving pickleball recognition,”
Morehouse says.
Morehouse, who is associated with Pickleball Canada,
researched the topic and found no other inductions. In the
U.S., a Pickleball Hall of Fame has been set up.
“It’s the fastest growing sport in North America,” he says
from Tiffin Park on a bright, sunny day where 16 people
were playing on the four blue-topped courts.
There was no one playing on the adjacent tennis court.
“Every morning you see this many people and the tennis
court is barely used,” notes Proctor, who is the founder
78
of the Midland Area Pickleball Club; Morehouse is a
founding director.
Proctor started the club in 2014 with 14 people. By the
end of the first summer, she had 35 paid members. The
club now has 120 members. Morehouse says pickleball
is typically played by older adults, but he wanted to
develop the club for everyone.
“We wanted a club for all ages, all builds and all
abilities,” he explains.
Prior to starting the Midland club, Proctor and
Morehouse were conveners at the Askennonia Senior
Centre Pickleball Club.
“I thought my daughter would like to play, but she
couldn’t because she wasn’t a senior,” says Proctor. “So
we decided to start the club and make it available for
younger people.”
Morehouse also started pickleball at the Midland YMCA,
where it’s now offered three times a week. But building
the four badminton-sized courts on a single, underused
tennis court is a solid accomplishment of the duo.
“I got the money, Helen did the design and Mayor Gord
McKay convinced the council it was the right way to do
it,” Morehouse explains.
The Tiffin courts are public. No membership is
required to use them but the club promotes them.
“We negotiated so it would be free for everybody,”
Proctor notes.
Proctor and Morehouse also started pickleball at
Waypoint Centre for Mental Health for staff and patients.
“Pickleball is popular because a lot of people are
transitioning from tennis. The court is a quarter of the
size and it’s a low-impact sport. It’s a much faster game
than tennis so it’s more fun,” adds Proctor, a former
tennis player.
In the winter, the club uses the North Simcoe Sports
and Recreation Centre’s gym one night a week and the
Tay Shores Public School gym four nights a week. The
club membership fee is $90 a year.
For more information on the club, visit
midlandareapickleballclub.ca.
This story was written by Gisele Winton Sarvis
and first appeared in the Midland Mirror.
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