HCC to Host First ASL Pickleball Tournament on April 19

HOLYOKE — Holyoke Community College (HCC) will host its first-ever American Sign Language (ASL) immersion pickleball tournament on Saturday, April 19.

Sponsored by the HCC Deaf Studies Department, the HCC ASL Club, and the HCC Office of Student Engagement, the tournament will run from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on the pickleball courts inside the Bartley Center for Athletics and Recreation. This fun and friendly tournament is free for participants and geared for players of any skill level. Spectators are welcome.

The tournament begins at 9 a.m. with introductions and instructions in pickleball rules and strategy given in American Sign Language. Pickleball practice will start at 9:30 a.m., with the tournament running from about 10 a.m. until noon, followed by an awards presentation and social time.

HCC ASL instructors Minh Vo and Mick Posner, who teach in the HCC Deaf Studies Department, will lead the pickleball instruction.

“First, there will be some lessons in ASL signs and then lessons on playing pickleball,” said Carol Ann Smalley, an HCC learning specialist and ASL interpreter in the Office of Students with Disabilities and Deaf Services. “Then, for the tournament, it will just be a random draw to make teams. It’ll be a couple of hours of playing pickleball, then the ASL Club is going to have a raffle and also sell food.”

Smalley said the tournament is meant for people who are fluent in ASL, but also for students and others who are learning American Sign Language. “The idea is to immerse yourself in both the language and playing the sport. There aren’t any cash prizes; it’s just for fun.”