Pickleball big in Loudonville

There is much to be said about the benefits of physical activity and maintaining an active lifestyle, but while the members of the Loudonville Pickleball Organization have found that to be true, they have discovered the joys of pickleball come with a caveat.

“The game has brought many people together and built some great friendships already, and we’ve only been at this for a few months,” group coordinator Darla Stitzlein said. “Loudonville is a small community, but through pickleball, we’re all meeting new friends and developing wonderful relationships while getting exercise. It’s been such a blessing and very heartwarming to see the way the community has gotten behind our efforts.”

Those efforts are to raise upward of $120,000 to build three new pickleball courts at the Loudonville Swimming Pool, located just outside of Loudonville in Holmes County.

According to Stitzlein, a small but dedicated group of people from Loudonville wanted to play pickleball and were going to Perrysville. They then discovered the outdoor courts in Ashland, where they were traveling three days a week to play.

Stitzlein said those courts were so beautiful it planted a seed in their minds: Why not try to build courts in Loudonville that could draw people to the community to play and spend time?

“We were having such a blast, and we felt that we needed to pursue building courts in Loudonville,” Stitzlein said. “We were spending our money and going out to eat and shopping elsewhere, and we wanted to create that opportunity for Loudonville.”

The group went to the Loudonville Village Council and made a presentation, and Stitzlein said the council was excited to help.

They offered the old basketball courts near the pool that were never used as a court, and the group built two temporary outdoor courts, which were used immediately with great success.

With additional vacant land connected to the pool, the village council quickly designated that land for three new pickleball courts.

“Within a week we had around 30 people playing, many of them new,” Stitzlein said.

Now the group has grown to around 65 and continues to see growth.

The Loudonville Pickleball Organization did some grant research, went to the public for financial support and met with a contractor to design the courts.

The fundraising process has already netted $70,000 including two donations from the Loudonville Fraternal Order of Eagles #2275, which earned naming rights with a $10,000 donation, and Stakes IGA, which donated $5,000.

In addition, the Loudonville Pickleball Organization has put together some fundraisers of its own, including a stromboli sale they dubbed Strombolipalooza.

That event saw them raise more than $5,500, and just as important, it brought together many of their members who united to create the 480 strombolis during a five-hour span where Stitzlein said they grew even closer together.

“We had 33 people who dove in and made stromboli, and we had such a blast,” Stitzlein said. “We have had so many people thank us for making the effort to do this. The local support has been incredible. Our hope is that once we get the courts built, it will entice even more people to join and experience the joy of the game and the camaraderie we continue to grow in our group. It’s just been heartwarming.”

Not only is the outdoor court project in full swing, but village council also decided to further the group’s effort by donating a little-used youth center for indoor courts.

Stitzlein said the indoor courts have provided them with space to keep the leagues alive and rolling through the winter months. They even brought in a local Boy Scout troop and taught them how to play.

She said the hope is once the outdoor courts are built, it will add another piece of Loudonville’s efforts to bring people to the village to spend time and develop economic growth.

If anyone would like to donate to the fundraising effort, they can send a check to Mohican Area Growth Foundation, P.O. Box 246, Loudonville, OH 44842. Write Pickleball Project in the check memo line.

To learn more about this new opportunity, visit the Loudonville Pickleball Organization on its Facebook page.