Andie Balenger | Daily Press Members of the Gladstone Area Pickleball Club compete against eachother during their designated league play time. The club, which boasts over 100 active members, hosts “Learn to Play Pickleball” and other skill/technique development clinics for those interested in trying out the sport.

GLADSTONE — Those looking for a friendly, yet competitive, leisure activity should look no further than the Gladstone Area Pickleball Club. Officially established in 2021, the pickleball club has been welcoming players of all skill-levels, even those with no experience at all, into their tight-knit community. With some form of play occurring every day of the week, specifically during the morning hours, the club has grown exponentially in terms of members in the past two years.

“The whole sport becomes addicting. It is just fun to play,” Janet Beauvais, board member of the Gladstone Area Pickleball Club, said. “The sport is good for your body and your mind. We are getting a lot of good exercise and bringing a lot of people together.”

Pickleball is currently one of the fastest growing sports in the nation, its style and gameplay accommodating all ages and physical capabilities. Similar to tennis and ping pong, the sport requires a short-handled and broad-faced paddle, a wiffle ball, and a net. Played as both singles and doubles, those competing can only score on their serve and must reach 11 points to win. While there are other intricacies to the sport, some terminology including “the kitchen” and “a dink,” the sport is relatively easy to learn.

“I started playing in retirement, about four years ago. I learned how to play in Arizona and just fell in love,” Peggy Austin, board member of the Gladstone Area Pickleball Club, said. “It is just a really positive activity for people my age. It has always been a retirement sport, but the benefits go far beyond us.”

Starting out with a handful of retired folk who picked up the sport while spending their winters in warmer regions of the U.S., the Gladstone Area Pickleball Club now boasts over 100 members. However, the club’s current four-court setup, located on the Jones Elementary School grounds in Gladstone, can no longer accommodate the club’s rapid expansion.

“To play, you need everyone together. Four courts isn’t enough for all of our levels to play on,” Beauvais said. “What we are hoping to do is raise funds to build eight dedicated pickleball courts up at the sports park.”

The pickleball club has begun fundraising efforts to help their “Courts of Dreams Project” come to life. The facility, which will be located at the John and Melissa Besse Sports Park in Gladstone, is set to house eight pickleball courts with rubberized surfaces. The courts will be stacked in two groups of four, with a 20-foot walkway partitioning the space. The walkway will act as a social area for players, equipped with benches and gazebos for shade and rest.

The project was approved by the Gladstone City Commission after the club demonstrated their dedication to the success of the project.

“Once [the City Commission] saw how passionate we were about the game and that we were committed to really undertaking this, they were all for it,” Beauvais said. “Pickleball is becoming more and more popular, and we talked with [the Commission] about the national exposure that the sport has.”

The new courts will be open to the public, with the pickleball nets being permanent in comparison to the club’s current portable set. The courts will be individually fenced-off, preventing stray balls from interrupting play on nearby courts. In addition to continued league play, the pickleball club plans to host tournaments at the new facility for any interested parties to compete in.

“We want the courts to be a destination. If we have those eight courts up on the Bluff, people will want to come here and want to play on them because they are going to be state-of-the-art,” Beauvais said. “The eight courts will also allow us to host tournaments.”

Because Gladstone is one of the only cities in the Upper Peninsula to have a high-quality set of pickleball courts, thanks to past donations from local businesses, families, and the Hannahville Indian Community, people have been traveling from various areas to play in the Gladstone Area Pickleball Club’s league. Even those who are just visiting the area on their summer vacation have utilized the club’s current space. This wide-ranging interest in the club’s current facilities have only furthered their need to expand.

“We are hoping that the new courts will be more than just Gladstone,” Beauvais said. “We want this to be for Delta County, and even the U.P. We want them to be the place to be.”

For a club that began with a few players painting or duct-taping lines on pads of concrete in various locations across town, their current condition is pretty remarkable. The club now accommodates three levels of play, beginner/novice, intermediate, and advanced, along with hosting a variety of clinics for those interested in improving their level of play.

“We started out doing ‘Learn to Play Pickleball’ lessons as soon as we formed … and right away our club grew and grew,” Austin said. “Now that we have grown enough, we feel like we could really be a place where everyone comes together to play.”

The club has already taken several steps to help reach their fundraising goal. In addition to applying for several grants, the club is currently accepting pledges from businesses, individuals, and corporations to help offset the $430,000 cost of the Courts of Dreams. Due to the matching grant requirements, however, the club is only accepting pledges at this time. Donations will be collected at a later date.

Pledges can vary in amount, and all donors will be acknowledged for their contributions. Special recognition will be given to those who make pledges within the $100 to $5,000 range. Those interested in making a pledge can contact the club’s grant coordinator, Rich Beauvais, at 906-399-1249. The club hopes to begin the Courts of Dreams Project by next Spring.

“When the courts are finished at the sports park, the nets will be set up so anyone can go there and play at any time,” Austin said. “We want to continue a lot of ‘Learn to Play Pickleball’ lessons too. We have had some real success with that program.”

The Gladstone Area Pickleball Club will be hosting an “Adult Beginners Clinic” on Wednesday, July 13 from 6 to 8 p.m., weather permitting. Those interested in participating can contact Janet at 920-851-2461. Only 16 participatory slots are available for the clinic. The club plans to host similar events in the future.

The Gladstone Area Pickleball Club is always open to accepting new members. Those interested in joining the club can do so by contacting Janet or reaching out to the club’s Facebook page, “Gladstone Area Pickleball.” The annual club fee is $10 and includes access to pickleball paddles, balls, and nets, along with facilitating any maintenance required for the club’s equipment. The league has some form of play happening every day, but exact times can be found on the club’s Facebook page.

“At our three levels of play, we match people up so that they are at a level that keeps the game exciting,” Beauvais said. “So we do play at a competitive level, but we still have fun.”