PLAY IT FORWARD!

Registration is open for the 2nd annual Friends of the Jones Libraries Pickleball Tournament, scheduled for November 9, 2025. The tournament, played round robin style, will be held indoors at the Bay Road Tennis Club and Multi-Sport Center on the Hampshire College campus. It offers competition for players intermediate through advanced, ages 18 and older.

Kelly Erwin, Board member of the Friends commented, “We like to spoil the players who support our libraries! There will be refreshments throughout the day, free raffle prizes and gifts, as well as prizes for first and second prize winners in each division.”

Pickleball’s popularity is growing in leaps and bounds throughout the country. It’s a game for all ages and can be played indoors or out. The Friends of the Jones Libraries hopes to channel this pickleball passion for a good cause. In partnership with BankESB and Fitness Together, as well as 25 additional sponsors, the Friends will provide support for the programming and services of the Jones Library and its branches.

Martin Miller, the Tournament organizer said, “It’s a winning strategy: play pickleball, raise funds, and feel good. This is a tournament where every point makes an impact and your paddle has the power to improve lives.”

What kinds of programs and services does the fundraising of the Friends support? The Jones Library, open to all, offers free computer usage and access to a myriad of digital resources, as well as thousands of online courses, and of course, books. Programs provided to patrons are as diverse as Sing with Your Baby, 50+ Jobseekers Networking Group, Art Studio for Adults, Teen Writers Group, Juneteenth celebration, Summer Reading Program, ESL tutoring, Reading the Classics, Community Gaming Group, and lectures on topics ranging from financial literacy to quaking bogs. There are musical instruments to be borrowed, deliveries of books to the homebound, and even free museum passes.

REGISTRATION FOR THE TOURNAMENT ENDS OCTOBER 11. For more information and to register: www.joneslibrary.org/pickleball