Carrying on the legacy of the 820 Foundation’s Seth Sowers Golf Tournament, the first 820 Foundation Pickleball Tournament brought together over 80 pickleball players, and it was a smashing success! The 820 Foundation exists to educate, inspire, and empower individuals to see end-of-life planning as a part of life. The 820 Foundation seeks to dramatically increase the number of Americans who have made end-of-life decisions early, thus avoiding the pitfalls of their state’s rules and regulations.

The 820 Foundation founder, Meredith, shares how the tournament added to the history and power of the foundation.

We wanted to shift to a pickleball tournament this year, as it is new for Rolla. Rolla is the host to many golf tournaments but not many pickleball tournaments. This tournament attracted a mainly new crowd, and we were able to share our mission and goals with a totally new audience. We had a guest attorney, David Osborne of Rolla, speak prior to the event. He was wonderful at sharing the importance of end-of-life/ emergency planning from a professional standpoint.

I loved the pickleball tournament! People stayed around and watched and cheered each other on. I was able to visit with so many folks, and lots of them opened up about their end-of-life planning experiences or experiences they have been through with loved ones.

I love how, for that day specifically, I get to talk to others about Seth and what an awesome person he is. It always makes me cry just sharing our story and sharing all he means to me and what I mean to him. I know Tucker, our son, loves hearing people share stories about his dad.

Rolla is such a wonderful community. People just really come together to support people. It is a small community that really is just for each other. It is something that is rare these days, and it is always a pleasant reminder of what an awesome place Rolla is to call home.