dinks
continued
THE AARON GIFFORD
BENEFIT TOURNAMENT
T
he 2nd annual Aaron Gifford Benefit Tournament, held in
early April, was the largest pickleball event ever held in Las
Cruces, New Mexico, and the first to be sanctioned by the USAPA
and SSIPA. One hundred fifty-one players from as far away as
North Carolina participated in the double elimination/round-
robin event at the New Mexico State University Tennis Complex.
This tournament was first held last April to commemorate
Aaron Gifford, who served in the 3rd Infantry with the US Army
and was in the first invasion of Iraq. Aaron came back from the
war with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). During his
struggle with PTSD, Aaron, along with his twin sister Kiley, was
introduced to pickleball by his mother, CeCe Hunter, and her
husband Ken.
“Aaron grew to love playing pickleball,” CeCe recalls,
“and he played in tournaments throughout the state of New
Mexico, where he won numerous medals. He built a wonderful
community of friends. We enjoyed playing as a family and felt
like Aaron had found an outlet for his PTSD.”
Tragically, Aaron’s new passion for pickleball was not
enough to defeat the effects of PTSD, and he claimed his own
life on January 8, 2018. Aaron is
among thousands of veterans
who have suffered from PTSD
and taken their lives after
serving their country. Each
day in America, 22 veterans
commit suicide, according to
the nonprofit organization Mission 22, which brings awareness
to this tragedy.
Motivated by Aaron’s death, CeCe and Kiley, along with
several of his pickleball friends, established a nonprofit 501(c)
(3) organization to honor him by sponsoring the Aaron Gifford
Pickleball Benefit to raise awareness and funds to support
veterans suffering from PTSD.
Last year’s tournament raised $15,000—90 percent of which
was donated to Mission 22. This year, the tournament raised
$23,000 for both Mission 22 and the Mesilla Valley Community of
Hope Veterans Housing Program in Las Cruces, which strives to
ensure that no veteran in Las Cruces is homeless.
PickTEN Program to Benefit Pickleball and Tennis
P
rofessional Pickleball Registry (PPR) and Professional
Tennis Registry (PTR) are pleased to announce the
creation of PickTEN, a revolutionary program aimed at
growing both pickleball and tennis.
PickTEN is the brainchild of PTR/PPR CEO Dan Santorum,
who explains, “After seeing how easy it is to learn pickleball,
the concept of a program designed to effectively introduce
two great sports was a no-brainer. From there, PTR COO
Brian Parkkonen took the PickTEN idea and developed an
effective 10-session program.”
PickTEN gives clubs a resource to attract new players
to their facilities by providing a fun, social and engaging
program. It creates an environment that allows players to
learn two sports by using pickleball as an introduction of
basic skills (striking and tracking the ball) and tennis to
further develop those skills.
“Since pickleball is an easy sport to learn and builds
confidence and hand/eye coordination, it’s a perfect gateway
to learn other racquet sports, especially tennis,” says Nicole
Hobson, PPR Member Services Manager.
PickTEN debuted in February during the PTR Symposium
16
and PPR Conference with Parkkonen and PPR’s Sarah
Ansboury conducting the presentation. The PickTEN
program will be part of the PPR organizational
membership. For more information on starting a PickTEN
program at your facility, call 843.785.7244 or 843.842.9777.
PPR is dedicated to educating, certifying and serving
pickleball teaching professionals and coaches around the
world in order to grow the game. It is the largest global
organization of pickleball teaching pros, with more than
1,250 members in all 50 states and 11 countries. PPR is
a subsidiary of Professional Tennis Registry, the largest
global organization of tennis teaching professionals and
coaches with nearly 16,500 members in 125 countries. For
more information, visit www.pprpickleball.org.
TO SUBSCRIBE CALL 888.308.3720 OR GO TO THEPICKLEBALLMAG.COM