Picklefest in the Park, held Saturday, August 26th, blended the popular sport of Pickleball with food, games, and more in a family-friendly annual event.
Pickleball players hit the court for a tournament during the event. Mixed doubles intermediate first-place winners were Rod Stickrath & Neattie Burris, second place went to Gary Phipps & Rhonda Moores, and Dan Stottsberry & Teresa Nefftook third place. For the men, Jason Divincenzo & Eric Wagner came in first, Dean Ryberg & Doug Gates placed second, and in third place were Rod Stickrath & Dave Goins. Phyllis Smith & Shannon Shelton, Christine Holmes & Gabby Becker, and Jessica McCoy & Brooke Sapp placed first, second, and third respectively for the women’s teams.
“We thought of the idea for this event, as we were coming up with ideas for fundraisers pickle ball kept coming up as a popular new sport that was sweeping the nation by storm. As a food organization, we love pickles of course so we thought what a better way to celebrate both of these things at the same time with a pickle festival” explained Amy Aurore, Foodworks Alliance Executive Director.
A great assortment of various local vendors and food trucks were set up near the pickleball courts. Face painting, kids games, and even a pickle photo op all added to the event’s charm, filling a large portion of Riverside Park with pickle-inspired fun!
The event was hosted by Foodworks Alliance, presented By Bayer HFCU, and held at Riverside Park in Zanesville. Foodworks Alliance is a nonprofit that offers commercial kitchen rental, co-packaging and production, and other services for food hobbyists, business owners, and farmers. The event was a fundraiser for the organization.
“This will definitely be an annual community event and we hope to make it bigger and better each year with more vendors, especially pickle vendors, as well as more Pickleball events within the tournament,” said Aurore.
Learn more about the Foodworks Alliance by visiting https://foodworksalliance.com or follow them on Facebook to make sure you are in the loop when next year’s event details are announced.
