Play pickleball for good is Kinship Farm's fundraiser for our Grow food for good program

Join us on Saturday, August 2, 2025 from 9am – Noon at the Salem Willows Pickleball Courts in Salem, MA. This is a very family-friendly location, with shaded grassy areas and arcade games nearby.

Please register by July 26 (see below).

It will be a morning of outdoor fun, community building, pickleball lessons, and tournament competition suited for every level. Whether you're a spectator, a beginner, or a seasoned pickleball player, if you want to be outside, meet new people, learn about and/or play pickleball, and support a good cause, this event is for you. All proceeds from our pickleball, raffle, and silent auction activities will go towards Kinship Farm Grow food for good (GFG) efforts to provide education about and expanded access to healthy, locally grown food for individuals and families in need on the North Shore.

Your donation and/or participation supports

• Collecting excess produce from local backyard gardens in order to donate it to food pantries and thereby help families in need;
• Collecting locally-grown fresh eggs from backyard flocks, also to donate to local food pantries;
• Youth outdoor education through hands-on fostering of baby chicks whose eggs will eventually be donated through GFG;
• Building outdoor gardens and installing indoor hydroponic grow towers at group homes and housing authority communities (for seniors and extra needs individuals) whose surplus is donated through GFG.

Registration and donations

• Registration (required to play - click here or below): $50
• Lessons (optional): $50 per person, registration required. 1-hour sessions are available at 9am, 10am, and 11am at Salem Willows on Aug. 2 (see below)
• Monetary donations: any amount you choose
• Non-perishable canned food items, boxed cereals, or hygiene products (optional, can be dropped off at the tournament, will be donated to the Acord Food Pantry)
• Purchase raffle tickets and bid on silent auction items (see below)

Partners and sponsors

• MINT Pickleball is joining us in hosting this event and providing lessons, plus selling paddles and clothing
• Acord Food Pantry receives all of our produce and egg donations
• Other partners: Follow this link for information about our additional partners including organizations who receive our gardens and grow towers

Tournament competition format: individual rotation

People should register individually, with no partner. Registrants will be asked to self-rate their pickleball skills and will be placed in pools accordingly. Pool play will be in a MINT pickleball derby format with points earned during multiple games to 9. Partners will be shuffled for every game. After each game, all players will record the number of points their team scored. The player in each pool who scores the most points in total wins their pool. If there are multiple pools at the same skill level, there will be a playoff round to determine bronze, silver, and gold winners. 

Recommended items to bring: protective eye wear, paddle, court shoes, other appropriate clothing, water, bug spray, and sunscreen.