Pickleball for a Purpose returns Saturday, benefits AJ Dillon Foundation

The second annual Pickleball for a Purpose turned The Picklr on Holmgren Way in Ashwaubenon into an all-day entry point for players of every level, with action running from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and tickets priced from $10 to $40. The format went well beyond a standard bracket, pairing a pickleball mixer with kids open play led by local coaches and pros, then finishing with a mixed moneyball division that carried a $1,000 grand prize.

That mix mattered. A tournament built around social play, youth programming and competitive matches fit the way pickleball has grown in Wisconsin and beyond, where families, casual players and serious competitors often share the same courts. In year two, the event leaned harder into that crossover appeal, turning a single fundraiser into a day-long public invitation rather than a closed competition.

The proceeds benefited the foundation AJ and Gabrielle Dillon launched in 2024, a charity built around two clear goals, empowering families and combating hunger. By April 2026, AJ Dillon said the foundation had donated more than $75,000 to hunger relief organizations and reached more than 3,000 families, giving Saturday’s tournament a track record that stretched far beyond a one-day event.

The setting helped too. The Picklr’s indoor venue at 2610 Holmgren Way, announced in 2024 for the Shoppes at the Village development, gave organizers a weatherproof home for a fundraiser that needed room for play, spectators and family programming. That kind of facility is becoming central to pickleball’s business model, especially for charity events that need to feel active without losing accessibility.

This was not the Dillons’ first pickleball fundraiser in Wisconsin. The first Pickleball for a Purpose was held in 2025 at Pickleball Kingdom in Appleton, and the return to Ashwaubenon signaled that the event is settling into an annual rhythm. The Dillons have also tied other giving efforts to sports-driven outreach, including Carry for a Cause, which delivered 1,400 backpacks of food for children and families in need.

With the second edition now in the books, the charitable structure around Pickleball for a Purpose looks less like a novelty and more like a repeatable model, one that gives amateur players a place to compete while pushing real resources toward hunger relief.