Austin teen teaches pickleball lessons to seniors

AUSTIN (KXAN) — An Anderson High School student is sharing his years-long love of pickleball with a wider audience, launching a service project teaching older residents a love of the sport.

Kesh Gupta is a rising senior at Anderson High School. This spring, he launched The Pickled Age, a community initiative designed to provide elderly residents with social community and physical activity – with free pickleball.

For Gupta, he wanted to leverage his experience of nearly a decade of playing and teaching the sport for this venture.

“I noticed that among older people, the two main causes of depression are social isolation and loss of physical health,” he said. “And I was thinking about it, and I was like, 'What better way to solve these problems than pickleball?' »

Gupta began reaching out to area senior groups to drum up interest before hosting pickleball clinics in several different locations. Ultimately, the project landed on the Austin Tennis Center as its main base.

So far, Gupta said The Pickled Age has attracted between 10 and 15 participants, adding that he and his instructors have been able to really connect with the older players on a personal level and learn their stories.

“It was really cool to see all the interactions that happened. Pickleball is a great way to bring people together,” he said, adding, “So it’s been really great, especially for the instructors – me and my instructors, we’ve bonded with the seniors, and it was a great experience. »

In the future, Gupta said he hopes to grow The Pickled Age's player base to reach a wider range of older people. He recognized the size of the Austin Tennis Center facility as a place that could accommodate the program as it grows and evolves.

And slow and steady is how you win the race, Gupta said; he added that anyone passionate about a community project can start small and still make a profound difference.

“I really like the social interaction part of pickleball and the fact that you can play with people of all ages,” he said. “I want to somehow make an impact in our community.”

The Pickled Age will hold its next clinic on Wednesday, June 19 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Austin Tennis Center, located at 7800 Johnny Morris Road. People interested in attending the clinic – or learning more about The Pickled Age – can find more details online.