In a fun way of giving back to the community, the Tampa Pickleball Crew recently hosted Battle of the Brands at its Ybor City Warehouse with Feeding Tampa Bay as the sole beneficiary.
In all, about $6,000 was raised for the Tampa-based food bank that covers 10 counties in west central Florida. The fundraiser helped the nonprofit organization distribute
27,700 meals.
“We’re really thankful that the pickleball community chose Feeding Tampa Bay to help their neighbors,” said Shannon Hannon-Oliviero, Feeding Tampa Bay’s public
relations officer.
The inaugural fundraising tournament, which drew 14 teams, surpassed the organizers’ expectations.
That prompted the Crew founders to plan another one before the end of the year, with the goal of making it a semiannual event.
“We’re going to do it again,” said Kayla Goldman, one of the four women who founded the Crew. “It was great. Any time people give, it exceeds our expectations.”
Aside from proceeds from player registrations and other donations, some people who came to support the event, but did not play, brought canned goods and other nonperishable food items to donate.
“It’s just great to see people show up and support (the event),” Goldman said.
As for the winning brands, Predalina Restaurant’s team came in first. The runners-up were Sunny Collabs, with Camp Tampa placing third.
Photo courtesy of Feeding Tampa Bay
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