Dear Editor,
Pickleball has arrived in Lewisburg! Hollowell Park now has six new pickleball courts surrounded by updated landscaping and seating areas. Please check them out. There’s a lot going on at Hollowell Park. The pickleball courts developed from a collective action involving local citizens, businesses, and Lewisburg’s city government. A few years ago, as pickleball was becoming a known sport, a few residents, and some local high school students (Suzanne Bicksler, Zach Ellis, and Ryan Vaughn) thought that constructing pickleball courts at Hollowell Park, where the old tennis courts were located, would be a good thing. When approached about the possibility of community pickleball courts, Lewisburg city council and Mayor White embraced the idea and stated that they would support and partially fund such an idea. The Lewisburg Foundation also agreed to make it one of their many projects to enhance our towns beauty. Then the work began. Fundraising took off. Herb Osburn, founder of Tennis Courts, Inc., whose company has constructed tennis and pickleball courts all over the USA, was consulted and agreed to oversee court construction with a focus on the surface, nets, and painting. Local businesses were also utilized in the court construction, landscaping, seating areas, fences, and steps. And, to no lesser degree, the City of Lewisburg workers, specifically the park and street department were involved. The purpose of this letter is to acknowledge all the individuals and businesses that made the vision of having pickleball courts become a reality. First, fundraising for this project was a joy. The community of donators to this project were extremely generous and encouraging as $147,150 was the total amount donated. Those donors and their donations are, as follows: •
James FB Peyton Fund, $50,000
Andrew Payne, $25,000
Seneca Trail Charitable Foundation, $22,500
Ray Wiley, $12,000
Katie Kilcollin & Jennifer Orr, $5000
Brandon & Melanie Johnson, $5000
Dede LaFollette Arbogast, $3000
Sarah Umberger, $2500
Sally Bray, $2000
Steve and Dede Talbott, $2000
Wooton, Davis, Hussell, & Johnson, $2000
Nancy Siegel, $2000
Tom Campbell, $1000
Oliver Irons, $1000
Mark & Debbie Kilcollin, $1000
Colin Rose & Paula Thomas, $1000
Bank of Monroe, $1000
Anonymous, $1000
Bill & Maggie Hutchinson, $500
Paul Grist/Grist Real Estate, $500
Anonymous, $250
Mark Collins, $250
Drew Kagan, 200
And Jack & Mimi Deolloqui-Turner, Chris & Bob Pollard, Mary & Drew Payne, Jeanne Hamilton & Lawson Hamilton Jr. Family Foundation
Next, the businesses and individuals involved with the construction work, are as follows:
Allen O’Brien: paving
Riverbend Nursery/Byron Black: seating and plantings
Chad McCoy Fencing: fencing
Ayers Construction Company (Mark Ayers): steps and sidewalk
Josh Polan: plantings
Tennis Courts Inc. (Herb Osburn): courts and nets
Lewisburg City Parks and Street Department: seating and construction (individual city workers):
Ryan Bostic
Howard Estep
Travis Howard
Joe Jones
Dannie Lemons
Jamison Sizeman
Levi Spence
Sam Totten
Mike Winebrimmer
We cannot say enough good things about all of the above. Each step of the construction project was performed with great skill, pride, and done to perfection. The cooperation and many suggestions of each business/person made this project much better than what was originally planned. On top of that, it was a pleasure to work with all of these individuals. The Lewisburg Foundation’s touch on any project makes it a better one. The LF has been sponsoring beautification projects in our community for years. We see its contributions each day when we walk or drive through our town. As their webpage explains, “we operate as a beautification organization focused on creating and maintain a stunning environment that protects and enhances the unique qualities of our historic town.” TAG and Annabelle Gaylean have worked timelessly for several decades leading the LF and our major assets to our cool little town. The LF’s focus on the landscaping around the pickleball courts adds
not only to the beauty of the courts but also the whole of Hollowell Park. Truly, Hollowell Park is a gem. Finally, the City of Lewisburg supported the pickleball vision from day one. Thank you, Mayor White, Misty Hill, Tony Legg, and the wonderful workers in the park and street department. This letter does not adequately convey how much appreciation we have for these folks. Tony Legg met with us many mornings, evenings, fielded phone calls at all hours, and any time in between to discuss how things should be constructed. He and his workers are top notch. Enjoy the pickleball courts. Enjoy Hollowell Park. We live in a great town!
Sincerely,
Brandon Johnson
Katie Kilcollin
Lewisburg
