December 1, 2024 Presidents Newsletter
An email went out to last year's club members and members who signed up to date.
Greetings Silveridge Pickleballers!
December is here already and the 2024-25 pickleball club season has been rolling since October 28 with all 8 courts buzzing louder and louder each day as more and more picklers arrive at Silveridge. If you haven’t arrived yet, we wish you safe travels and look forward to seeing you on the courts when you get here.
November & December:
The new ladder play league on Tuesdays for groups 3.25 to 4+ began on November 5 and ends on December 17. The play is fun and competitive. There will be another session beginning on Tuesday, January 14 and ending on Tuesday, March 11. If you want to participate in the next session, sign-up on SUG, which opens on January 7. Want to know more about the ladder play? Click here.
Once a month we have scheduled different group levels to play together in a combined round robin. This was on a trial basis and has been well received. Therefore, these combined round robins will continue into the new year. These sessions allow for mentoring, experience with the upper group players, and an added mix of competition and fun for all groups.
During the afternoon of November 16, we held the first Fun Pickleball Play Time & Social event of the season. Following the fun play time, the social committee and their many volunteers prepared the food and cooked up a delicious burger bash with about 108 people in attendance. Thank you to the Social Committee and the volunteers!
Betty Royal and her basket raffle volunteers sold tickets on November 16 at the breakfast, Market Day and at the Fun Pickleball Play Time & Social event. This was our first basket raffle of the year which generated $555. Congratulations to the winners: Karen Hendrickson, Barb and Barry Halpenny and Kevin & Janice Midstokke. Thank you for purchasing tickets to support our fundraising event!
On Saturday, November 23, the club held its first MLP format tournament for groups 3.25 and up. The format is a team of 4 players, 2 females and 2 males. There were 8 teams in the tournament, and each determined a team name and created some awesome costumes to make it fun! The best costume was the Great Balls of Fire team; congratulations to the creative team of David Johnson, Jack Hall, Vicki Drouillard and Betty Royal! The tournament winner was the Dinking Devils; congratulations to Mike Savre, Sam Nicolosi, Donna Stensrud, Mona Dukart & Gail Caraca (Mona and Gail shared a position because they both have injuries and were unable to play all six games). Next MLP tournament will be on January 25 for groups 2.5 & 3. Registration for this tournament opens on Saturday, January 4 and closes January 19.
Clinics began on November 30 and have been scheduled for each group level throughout the season. Please sign-up on SUG to attend. Thank you to our talented players who have volunteered to be clinic instructors. If you haven’t yet taken the opportunity to help out as a lead or assistant instructor, visit the SUG sign-up. Our club members appreciate your dedication and commitment to making us better players.
Everyone is welcome to attend the December 14 Fun Pickleball Play Time & Social event from 1:30pm to 3:30pm. Bring a snack to share. Following the fun play, the Christmas Celebration Social event will be held in the ballroom. Social begins at 4:30pm and at approximately 5:00pm a delicious lasagna, salad and breadstick dinner from the Olive Garden will be served for $10 per person, which will be collected at the event. Cheesecake for dessert! If you prefer veggie lovers lasagna, please answer the question “would you like a veggie lovers lasagna” when signing up. If you plan on attending the dinner, please sign-up on SUG before Wednesday, December 11. Bring extra cash because there will be a 50/50 draw and half of the proceeds will go to the kids at Sunshine Acres.
At the December 14 Fun Pickleball Play Time & Social event and the Christmas Celebration dinner the merchandise committee will be selling great Christmas gifts for pickleballs players in your life. Items include: Silveridge Pickleball Club shirts, Christmas ornaments, stickers to put on your favorite water bottle, safety sunglasses, cooling towels and pickleball key chains. Bring cash or your check book to place your orders.
A BIG THANK YOU!
Thank you to the Executive Committee and the many volunteers who worked hard to put everything in place at the pickleball courts before the season really got rolling in full swing. Our courts look great! You may have noticed the new clocks, special windsocks, new bulletin boards hung at the courts 5 to 8 gazebo, and the new yellow protector on top of the fences between all the courts. The park provided more benches at the courts 5 to 8 gazebo and we gave them a fresh coat of paint. The ladies league participants will be attaching some very visible tape on the bench feet in hopes to eliminate the tripping hazard. Thanks Ladies!
The new shed….wow! Thank you to the park for laying the pavers at the site. Tom Carli (our volunteer Court Maintenance Coordinator) did an awesome job at supervising the installation of electricity and placing the shed on the site. Once in place, Tom installed items that were needed to make the shed functional: metal shelves, building attic shelves, lighting, a cooling fan, electrical outlets for charging the leaf blowers, hangers for leaf blowers, and the step going into the shed, just to name a few tasks he completed. A HUGE THANK YOU to Tom Carli for putting in a lot of personal time to make this space awesome. The club looks forward to storing all the equipment in one location. Tom also leads a group of early morning volunteers who clean off the court's prior to players showing up and we appreciate the work this group performs.
Have you seen the new Tomohopper? A BIG THANK YOU to Brad Oliver and Lisa Friberg for donating this new piece of equipment to the club. We really appreciate your generosity. Watch this 0:47 YouTube video to see the Tomohopper in action.
A very huge THANK YOU to the Renter’s Association who once again approved our $3,000 request for funds in November. With the funds, the club purchased a VAPTR court drying machine. Watch this 1:46 YouTube video. Let the rains begin!
The gazebo at courts 5 to 8 has really changed and is so much more functional and comfortable. This past summer, and with the park maintenance manager's approval, Tom Carli and his volunteers removed the old wooden shed structure that was between 2 of the columns. The park installed pavers on the east side of the gazebo providing a place for the mini golf shed to be located, which was donated by the pickleball club (one we didn’t need anymore because of the big new shed). There are also new “winners” and "non-winners” signs hanging above the paddle racks. These signs were made and donated by Dave Ruenholl. Thank you, Dave.
Round Robin Captains! Thank you for being club ambassadors, organizing play for your groups round robins, answering questions, welcoming new members, and highlighting club events so your group is well informed.
The park replaced the old water fountain next to the wood shop entrance with a new state-of-the-art fountain that also fills your water bottle. The yellow protector on top of the fence between courts 1 to 4 was purchased by the park. The player's safety comes first! Thank you to the park management for these items.
We need you! When you filled out your membership form, we asked you to check the boxes for positions you would consider volunteering for, making our club the greatest in Arizona! Thank you for checking one or more of the boxes. However, we wanted to give you another chance in case you changed your mind and want to help in some way. You can use the SUG sign-up to volunteer. Visit the sign-up to see the list of different types of committees you may be interested in. Thank you for helping and finding time in your busy schedule.
If you have time in your busy schedule, consider attending a Group 2 round robin and be a mentor/guide for this group of newbies who are learning the pickleball basics. Thank you to the players who have already attended the round robins. Click here to visit the sign-up to be a mentor, or just show up at the courts. Group 2 would really appreciate the guidance because they may aspire to be a pickleball player just like you!
We want to thank the tournament volunteers who helped organize and work at the November 23 MLP tournament. If you haven’t had the chance yet, please sign-up on SUG to be a tournament volunteer for the future tournaments in January, February and March.
If you have an item you wish to donate to our basket raffles, you can deliver them to Betty Royal at lot # 374. We will be selling tickets throughout the season. Thank you for supporting our fund-raising event.
2025 Events:
Visit our website to get all the information about our club and the “Events” page to stay informed. New this year, we added the Calendar of Events page under Club Information. On this page, you will also find a printable club activity calendar by the month.
If you know someone who isn’t a member yet and is interested in learning what pickleball is all about, the pickleball basics, and joining in on the fun, suggest they sign-up for our Introductory to Pickleball for Beginners sessions. Information to sign-up is on our Events page.
The Social Committee will be at the January 4 Club Expo to answer questions and hand out membership forms and court schedules to people who are interested in learning more about our club.
Don’t forget to buy your basket raffle tickets at the January 4 breakfast and Club Expo. Tickets will be sold again, for the same baskets, at the January 18 breakfast and Market Day. Drawing will take place on January 18. If you can volunteer to sell tickets, please sign-up on SUG.
Clinics and tournaments continue into 2025. Visit the Events page to see the list of clinics and tournaments. Visit the SUG sign-up to participate.
Mark your calendars to attend the Fun Pickleball Play Time & Social events on January 18 and February 8 that will start at 1:30pm and end at 3:30pm.
The SR band will be performing “On the Green” on January 19, February 16, and March 16 from 2-3:30pm, which means the pickleball courts will be closed while the band entertains the audience sitting on the green grass.
Barry Halpenny will be facilitating a Rules Review discussion on January 20 at 4:00pm. Sign-up on SUG so Barry can prepare for the session. Thank you, Barry!
We will be scheduling a Paddle Demo event again in January or February. Stay tuned for more information as we finalize the plans. Visit the “Events” page or watch for posters on the sandwich boards.
We will be participating in the “Let’s Play Bingo” night again this year on February 12. Sign-up on SUG to have tables/chairs reserved for our club members who will play bingo and provide how many will be eating food which is sold before playing bingo. Join your fellow club members and help us say ‘thanks’ to the Renter’s Association for their support of our club. You might even have fun and win some cash!
March 1 is our Annual General Meeting (AGM) and dinner event. Please plan on attending and sign-up on SUG to assist with the room set up and ordering of food. Important topics affecting all of us are discussed and decided.
Sadly, all good things come to an end, and we will have a Season Ending Fun Pickleball Play Time, Volunteer Appreciation and BBQ Event on March 22. Sign-up on SUG to accommodate the ordering of food.
The Numbers:
Membership Data
| Membership as of Nov 30, 2024 | Membership as of Nov 30, 2023 | |||||
|
Group |
Members | # New | Group | Members |
# New |
|
|
2 |
11 | 5 | 2 | 17 | 8 | |
|
2.5 |
41 | 3 | 2.5 | 47 | 9 | |
|
3 |
33 | 1 | 3 | 25 |
4 |
|
|
3.25 |
39 | 0 | 3.25 | 33 |
3 |
|
|
3.5 |
31 | 2 | 3.5 | 36 |
2 |
|
|
4+ |
30 | 4 | 4+ | 22 |
1 |
|
| TOTALS | 185 | 15 | TOTALS | 180 |
27 |
|
The Financials
| Below are the financial transactions from October 1, 2024 to November 30, 2024 | |
| Revenue | |
| Membership fees, basket raffle ticket sales, merchandise sales, social event fees | $9,118.00 |
| Expenses | |
| Admin. (SUG, web, Zoom) & office supplies/charges for Activities Office services | $351.02 |
| Pickleballs & Nets | $281.00 |
| Court Equipment & Supplies (ongoing): leaf blower, sandwich boards, microphone stand, markers, document holder, new kitchen clocks, windsocks, ball caddy on wheels, paint, tape, yellow plastic protector on court fence, etc. | $1,250.93 |
| Merchandise purchases, social committee expenses, tournament expenses | $1,182.96 |
| Improvement Projects: items for our courts, sheds, other locations, or services | $36.24 |
| Misc. | $324.72 |
| $3,426.87 | |
In Closing:
Your Executive Committee meets monthly, and the next meeting is on December 11 at 4:15pm. The January meeting will involve important discussions about the March 1 AGM, potential by-law changes, and election of officers. If you have any club related questions or ideas, please don’t hesitate to speak to any of the Executive Committee members. The next newsletter will probably be at the beginning of February 2025 unless something can’t wait to be communicated to our members.
My last thank you is to our members for making this an awesome pickleball club where everyone feels welcomed! Such great organization, camaraderie, and communication: it’s a great place and I’m proud to call this my awesome winter pickleball club.
Happy holidays!
See you on the court,
Donna Stensrud
Executive Committee: Donna Stensrud, President; Julie Nosko, 1st Vice-President; Tom Drouillard, 2nd Vice-President; Debbie Nelson, Treasurer; Kathy Port, Communications Officer; Kendra Jensen, Secretary.