Life Lessons from Pickleball™
Meet Shelley and Sher, the dynamic duo, who found more than just a sport on the Pickleball court - they discovered how Pickleball was weaving its magic, creating connections, boosting confidence, and sprinkling their lives with amazing joy. Inspired by their own personal transformation and the contagious enthusiasm of their fellow players, they knew this was more than a game. Join them on their weekly podcast as they serve up engaging conversations with people from all walks of life, and all around the world reaching across the net to uncover the valuable Life Lessons from Pickleball™.
Episodes
103 episodes
E102: Zacharie: Building Pickleball in Rwanda
What if pickleball could change an entire community and even a country?In this inspiring episode, we welcome Zacharie, a pioneer of pickleball in Rwanda who is transforming lives through the power of sport. What began as a chan...
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Episode 102
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20:02
E101: Alice Tym: Stop Complaining, Start Playing Pickleball
What if the only reason you played sports was because it was fun?Alice Tym’s story is a masterclass in courage, action, and joy. From starting a women’s tennis team at the University of Florida when none existed, to competing o...
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Episode 101
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30:02
E100: Mark Palm: Saving Lives and Finding Strength Through Pickleball
What if pickleball became the one thing that carried you through cancer and then helped you change lives around the world?Mark Palm, founder of Samaritan Aviation, shares his incredible journey from mission pilot to USA Pickleb...
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Episode 100
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38:07
E99: Randy Fuller: Building a Pickleball Community at Rally Pickleball Club
How does a lifelong racquet sports player turn a local need into one of the Pacific Northwest’s most exciting new indoor pickleball communities?In this episode, Randy Fuller, founding partner of Rally Pickleball Club in Auburn, Washingto...
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Episode 99
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27:46
E98: Susan Swern: Pickleball for Good and Operation PaddleLift
How can pickleball become a force for global good, community connection, and life-changing opportunity?In this episode, Susan “Dinker Bell” Swern shares her remarkable pickleball journey, from first discovering the game after years of te...
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Episode 98
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39:06
E97: Coach Andy: Growing Pickleball for Girls in Uganda
How can pickleball become a bridge to hope, healing, education, and opportunity for girls who have been left behind?In this episode, Coach Andy from Uganda shares the powerful story behind Pickleball Kids Uganda and Growing the Game for ...
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Episode 97
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26:51
E96: Kelsea Thompson: Building Pickleball Community at PickleCon
What happens when one of the biggest pickleball festivals in the country brings competition, connection, vendors, clinics, networking, and community all under one roof?In this episode, Kelsea Thompson, director of PickleCon, shares how s...
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Episode 96
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28:02
E95: Thomas Yelloweyes: From Rock Bottom to Night Train Pickleball
How can pickleball help someone rebuild their life, rediscover purpose, and become the kind of coach who changes other people’s lives too?In this episode, Thomas Yelloweyes shares his extraordinary story of trauma, foster care, loss, sur...
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Episode 95
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30:16
E94: Will Parton: Building Pickleball Community Through Hitch
Will Parton shares how a major life move and starting over in a new country led him to discover the true power of the pickleball community. As a lifelong racquet sport athlete, Will found connection through pickleball and turned that experie...
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Episode 94
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26:38
E93: Encore! Mani Barajas-Alexander: The Pura Vida Pickleball Experience
We are honored to share that Mani Barajas-Alexander is featured in our new book, Life Lessons from Pickleball™ and as this episode airs, Sher and Shelley are experiencing Pura Vida at Mani’s place in Costa Rica.
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Episode 93
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30:40
E92: Brian Montgomery: A Pickleball Transformation
How do you rewrite your life one step at a time when you feel stuck in a body and mindset that no longer feel like your own?In this episode, Brian Montgomery shares one of the most inspiring transformation stories we’ve heard on Life Les...
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Episode 92
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32:20
E91: Audrey Phillips: Pickleball, Travel, and Connection
How can pickleball, psychology, and travel come together to create joy, connection, and a more vibrant way of aging?In this episode, Audrey Phillips shares her remarkable journey as a psychotherapist, educator, tournament player, pickleb...
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Episode 91
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29:29
E90: Rachael Kroog: Pickleball, Music, and the Joy of Connection
How can pickleball become both a high-level competitive sport and a joyful creative expression of mind, body, and spirit?In this episode, senior pro Rachael Kroog shares her extraordinary pickleball journey, from the moment her 79-year-o...
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Episode 90
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34:07
E89: Mike “Sleeves” Sliwa: Pickleball Off the Grid
What happens when someone living off the grid in a yurt becomes one of the most connected voices in senior pickleball?In this episode, Mike "Sleeves" Sliwa shares his fascinating journey from leaving the traditional teaching path to buil...
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Episode 89
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32:46
E88: Scott Manthorne: The Pickleball Effect
Why does pickleball create such powerful connection so quickly, and what happens when one author sets out to capture that magic in a book?In this episode, Scott Manthorn shares the story behind The Pickleball Effect, his bestsel...
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Episode 88
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31:21
E87: Sandy Smith: Healing, Resilience, and Community Through Pickleball
How can pickleball help someone rebuild strength after cancer, find a new community, and become a coach, referee, and leader in the sport?In this episode, Sandy Smith shares her inspiring pickleball journey, from being diagnosed with ute...
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Episode 87
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30:28
E86: Aaron Trost: Pickleball Without Borders
How can pickleball become a tool for healing, community, faith, and hope in countries all around the world?In this episode, Aaron Trost, founder of Pickleball Planter, shares how a sport he once resisted became a life-changing calling. A...
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Episode 86
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32:19
E85: Sean McCoy: Pickleball, Healing, and Life Is a Team Sport
Sean McCoy joins us to share a heartfelt journey from military service to mental health counseling, and how pickleball helped him rediscover play, belonging, and connection. We explore how the game can be used in therapy, why “you are enough...
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Episode 85
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36:00
E84: Mike Branon: Pickleball and the Power of Positive Dinking
Mike Branon, bestselling author of Pickleball and the Art of Living and The Joy of Pickleball, joins us to share how positive dinking, mindset, and reinvention shape a meaningful life on and off ...
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Episode 84
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30:51
E83: Melinda Alcosser: Pickleball With Purpose
Melinda Alcosser, educator, coach, drummer, and founder of With Heart Travel, shares how pickleball, connection, and intentional travel have shaped her life and sparked meaningful projects from Punta Cana to Uganda. Melinda shows how joy, pr...
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Episode 83
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32:19
E82: Rick Cipes: The Zen of Pickleball
How can pickleball become a doorway to mindfulness, creativity, and deeper connection with others?In this episode, writer, storyteller, and pickleball creative Rick Cipes shares how he found pickleball during the upheaval of 2020 and dis...
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Episode 82
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36:06
E81: Dr. Jerry “Dr. J” Brinegar: Leveling the Playing Field in Pickleball
How can pickleball open the door to joy, healing, and purpose at every age and ability level?In this episode, Dr. Jerry Brenniger shares his remarkable pickleball journey, from discovering the sport as a racquetball player with a vision ...
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Episode 81
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28:25
E80: Ezekiel and Matthias Wagner: The Next Generation of Pickleball
How can two brothers use pickleball to strengthen family, grow their faith community, and inspire the next generation of players?In this episode, brothers Ezekiel and Matthias Wagner share how a simple vacation discovery at a park in Sou...
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Episode 80
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34:14
E79: Ron Ponder: Spreading Pickleball Across the Globe
How does a casual invitation to try pickleball turn into a life of international travel, officiating, and helping grow the sport around the world?In this episode, Ron Ponder shares how he first discovered pickleball in 2017 after a bikin...
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Episode 79
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29:26
E78: Anna Glotova: Hope, Healing, And Pickleball in Ukraine
How can a simple paddle and wiffle ball become a source of healing, resilience, and hope in the middle of war?In this deeply moving episode, Anna Glotova shares how pickleball entered her life while she was displaced from Ukraine and liv...
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Episode 78
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41:38