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Surprise pickleball tourney raises record to fight MS
Kloss family, SPA lead event with more than $10,000 in donations
Posted
Four years ago, Annie and Jim Kloss were enjoying their recent marriage, when Annie was suddenly diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
As the couple were both avid pickleball players who held their wedding ceremony on a pickleball court, Jim and Annie assumed this health challenge by applying their passion for the sport to help others affected by MS in Arizona.
Their first MS Charity Pickleball Tournament was held in 2019 in Surprise under the leadership of Marlene Ciupak-Berwald, president of the Surprise Pickleball Association.
The couple recently concluded their third MS Charity Tournament event after a two-year hiatus.
This year’s event attracted a field of 324 pickleball players from across the Valley, raising record donations of more than $10,000 for the local MS Society, through a three-day raffle, online donations and player entry fee proceeds.
“The pickleball community opened their hearts and wallets to support MS, after missing the past two years, due to COVID,” tournament Jim Kloss said. “Annie and I are grateful to the Surprise Pickleball Association for overseeing the tournament, and everyone that volunteered and contributed to make the 2022 tournament the second largest DIY fundraising event in Arizona for MS.”
“The greatest healing therapy is friendship and love,” Annie Kloss added. “I am honored to be surrounded by friends, family and organizations that lined up to support research and programming for individuals affected by MS here in Arizona.”
Sponsors of the 2022 MS Charity Tournament included Edward Jones/Braden Cope, Apex Network Physical Therapy, TOPP Pickleball and Pickleball Rocks, Walgreens provided CPR volunteers for the event.
“The MS Community in Arizona continues to amaze, and this is just another example,” said National MS Society Market President Chris Marshall. “Our DIY fundraising platform allows people to expand beyond our signature events and create events that rally the community around activities that are close to their heart. We are extremely grateful to everyone who organized and supported this year’s Pickleball tournament and want them to know it is helping us get that much closer to a cure.”
Nearly one million people live with multiple sclerosis in the U.S. In the past 75 years, the National MS Society has been the driving force for progress and paved the way for nearly all the treatment options.
The society is determined to be a lifelong partner and resource for every person affected by MS—those diagnosed with the disease and their loved ones, to ultimately find a cure.
The money raised through the MS Charity Pickleball Tournament will help fund MS research, programs and services so that the nearly 15,000 people affected with MS in Arizona can live their best lives.
