For the Love of Cats Pickleball Tournament

For the Love of Cats, a non-profit rescue organization dedicated to saving the lives of cats and kittens in Collier County, hosted their first annual ‘Purrs and Paddles’ Pickleball Tournament on Saturday, May 17th at East Naples Community Park. Through sponsorships, player sign-ups, and raffles, the tournament raised over $40,000.

The community event and tournament included over 50 pickleball players, a lively crowd of spectators, food trucks, great music by Naples DJ, a refreshing purrsecco bar, engaging vendor village, a fabulous Naples Bentley Continental on display, and a delightful selection of raffle baskets.

The stars of the show were Sassy and Shadow, who were rescued after their mom needed emergency veterinary help. They have been fostered since they were 10 days old and were adopted at the event by one of the pickleball tournament players!

“We are incredibly thankful to all of our sponsors who helped make our first annual pickleball tournament a success! A special thank you to our media sponsor, Naples Press, the USOP National Pickleball Center, and to the volunteer students from Barron Collier High School,” said Jan Rich, Founder of For the Love of Cats. “The success from the tournament will allow us to continue helping more underserved families with their cats in need and increase resources for our TNR (trap, neuter, return) program for community and feral cats. We made many new friends at our tournament and can’t wait to see even more players next year!”