Pickleball is coming to GR!!! That's right, the sport you have all been asking for makes its way to GR in October. Be on the lookout for more information on that VERY SOON!

Congratulations to all of our Q2 Champions. Also, congrats to all of those who won an award in the team sports (MVP, Most Improved, etc.). We don't have room to include everyone each quarter, but if you won one of those awards, congratulations on a fine season!

I can't believe it is July already! I feel like I blinked and all of a sudden Pride Month has come and gone, and we are on to bigger things! I'd like to thank everyone who volunteered their time and efforts staffing booths across the state last month. We reached a lot of people, some of whom have already signed up for a fall league. This year has been just amazing. So many fresh new faces, and lots of friendly familiar ones as well. We have added indoor volleyball, Pickleball, and golf to the mix in 2025, and there is more yet to come!!!!!

Everything we do is built on the backs of volunteers. So whether you have served as a captain, umpire, helped with an event, or much, much more, know that your work is appreciated and, more importantly, it makes a difference in the lives of the people we serve! At least once a week, someone shares a story with me about how much GAAY Sports has improved their life. I've heard things from helping them to overcome social anxiety, finding their tribe of people to help them navigate through a difficult and sometimes lonely road we call life, and some have met the love of their life through GAAY Sports. It's those stories that keep me going, and hopefully you, too.

That being said, for GAAY Sports to continue to be able to grow and change lives in other cities, we will need more people to step up to the plate and graciously give where they can. In the next couple of weeks, I will be seeking volunteers to serve as "Directors of Operations" for each sport. These people will basically be the first point of contact for each specific league. They will keep the equipment for that specific league and make sure any setup and teardown is done to the facility standard before we leave. At the end of each year, they will sit down with other Directors of Operations within the same sport to discuss any rule changes for the next season of that sport. If you have any questions or think you may want to volunteer for a specific sport, you can email nicholas@gaaysports.org and let me know. Also, if you have other skill sets that you think might be of use and would like to help, please, by all means, let me know. I have no idea what kind of work many of you do, but if you think you can benefit us, please let me know!

There are some fun and exciting things in the works for the 2nd half of the year. We'd love to sponsor a boat in this year's Dragonboat Race in September. All the proceeds go to the Women's Center in Lansing. So not only do you get to compete in a unique sporting activity, but hopefully, we get to win another trophy for the cabinet to go along with the Feats of Strength titles we have from the Lumberjack Festival! See all of you soon!

Sincerely,

Nicholas J. Wendling