Father's Day pickleball tournament raises funds for Alzheimer's Association

The Father’s Day weekend Purple Paddle Tournament turned two days at the Pavilion of Pickleball in Knoxville into a fundraiser for the Alzheimer’s Association, tying pickleball competition to a cause that reaches many East Tennessee families. The event ran June 20-21, 2026, and promotional language urged players to take part in honor of someone they love.

Tournament listings said proceeds supported the Alzheimer’s Association’s care, support and research efforts, giving the event a clear charity angle beyond the usual local bracket. The format fit a familiar amateur pickleball pattern: players came for the games, but the weekend was built to move money toward a health cause with broad personal meaning.

WATE 6 On Your Side said Saturday’s Father’s Day tournament competition raised funds for the Alzheimer’s Association, and the station previewed the fundraiser earlier in the week with Pavilion of Pickleball manager Elize Kikkert. The buildup helped position the tournament as more than a one-off social event, with local backing already in place before the first matches were played.

The Alzheimer’s Association Tennessee Chapter says it provides support services, care options and education for families and caregivers in Knoxville, Nashville and Memphis. The national organization says its mission is to end Alzheimer’s and all other dementia by accelerating global research, driving risk reduction and early detection, and maximizing quality care and support. That mission gave the Knoxville tournament a direct connection to a cause that has long relied on community-based fundraising to sustain its work.

For amateur pickleball, the Purple Paddle Tournament showed how a local event can do double duty. It brought players together on Father’s Day weekend at PoP - Pavilion of Pickleball, and it used the sport’s easy, welcoming format to support an organization focused on families, caregivers and research. In a growing amateur scene, that combination of recreation and purpose remains one of the game’s strongest selling points.