Four local pickleball players hope to break a world record in the booming sport while promoting a lifesaving cause.
West Michigan’s Brad Haverkamp, Julie Ondersma, Sydney Sonday and Caleb Dang are determined to break the Guinness World Record for the longest pickleball marathon by competing for 30 hours straight. The current record is 27 hours and 5 minutes, set on Jan. 19 by a quartet from Missoula, Montana.
Courtesy of Brad HaverkampBrad Haverkamp, pickleball player on his way to a world record.
The November 23rd marathon will take place at the All In Pickleball Gym in the Byron Center. Admission to the race is free.
The overall goal of their drive, which they call Paddles for a Purpose, is to raise funds for Gift of Life Michigan, a nationally recognized organ procurement organization that serves as a liaison between donors, hospitals and transplant centers. In addition, event attendees are encouraged to register as organ donors either online or on-site.
Pickleball, which combines elements of table tennis, tennis and badminton, has been the fastest-growing sport in the United States for five years in a row, with 8.9 million players in 2023, up from 4.8 million in 2022, according to industry group Sports & Fitness Industry Association.
For more information about the event and to donate, please visit https://giftoflifemichigan.org/get-involved/events/paddles-for-a-purposeFurther information on registering in the organ donation register can be found at https://giftoflifemichigan.org/.
Decency In honor of National Pickleball Day on August 8, pickleball players played a special training session.
From fun to change
“Fun” was the reason for the idea to break the world record, says Haverkamp, the organizer of the event.
“It actually started when we found out about the Guinness World Record,” says Haverkamp. “We read some newspaper articles about it and thought it would be a fun thing.”
From then on, it was no longer just about having fun, but about making a difference in people’s lives.
“We all think that the Gift of Life and organ donation is such a wonderful thing,” he says. “We’re just happy to raise awareness and raise a few dollars along the way and help.”
More than 2,400 Michigan residents are waiting for a life-saving organ, and 80% of them need a kidney.
Courtesy of Evan ZuiderveenEvan Zuiderveen, potential transplant recipient
This includes Ada resident Evan Zuiderveen, an industrial entrepreneur who performs peritoneal dialysis at home while waiting for a kidney transplant.
Zuiderveen is also an avid pickleball player and wants to be there to cheer on the four pickleball players as they attempt to set a new world record.
“You get to meet new people from all cultures and all ages,” Zuiderveen says of pickleball. “It’s a great activity. And it’s a social thing too.”
Zuiderveen is hoping for a living donor, that is, a person who will donate an organ to another person while still alive. Gift of Life Michigan is an intermediary for deceased donors.
“The greatest thing for me is knowing that people can live with one kidney and donate the other and still live the same life as before,” says Zuiderveen.
Coordinating fundraising efforts
Courtesy of Gift of Life MichiganAlison Gillium, senior public relations specialist at Gift of Life Michigan
According to Alison Gillium, senior community relations specialist at Gift of Life Michigan, Paddles for a Purpose is an opportunity to raise awareness of the need for kidney donations.
“Our mission is to honor life through giving, and we do that by working with families when their loved ones pass away,” Gillium says.
She said Gift of Life works with all hospitals in the state to see if there is potential for organ and tissue donations. If there is, they work with donor families and transplant centers to ensure the organs get to people waiting for life-saving transplants.
“Living donations are handled by transplant centers in Michigan and throughout the U.S., so they oversee that part,” Gillium adds. “Other than that, of course, we’re big advocates of everyone getting the life-saving organ transplant they need, whether it’s from a deceased or living donor.”
Decency The overarching goal of their effort, which they call “Paddles for a Purpose,” is to raise funds for Gift of Life Michigan, a nationally recognized organ procurement organization that acts as a liaison between donors, hospitals and transplant centers.
From Haverkamp’s perspective, another part of the four pickleball players’ achievement will go beyond that feat, even if they break the world record.
“From my perspective, organ donation is really one of the most beautiful things you can do,” says Haverkamp. “If you are on the organ donation register, your final act as a human being is an incredible gift to other people, and not just one person, but potentially several. I think it really enriches your legacy, who you are and how you lived your life.”
