Laura is a USA Pickleball local ambassador and has a strong passion to play and coach the game. She received PPR certification from Pro Sarah Ansboury at Palmetto Dunes in Hilton Head, SC. Laura plays or teaches almost daily, helps to facilitate needed local places to play, competes locally in tournaments, and volunteers her time for Wolverine and Chelsea Pickleball programming for their club. Laura is a retired police sergeant for the City of Ann Arbor, with experience as a Washtenaw County Police Academy instructor. She has a Master’s degree in Emergency Management and a Bachelor’s degree from MSU in Criminal Justice with a minor in Psychology. Laura also has 20+ years of coaching experience in youth sports, either for the school district or club sports. She resides in Chelsea with her teenage daughter.

Jake has been passionate about sports for as long as he can remember – his first word was ball! After playing tennis for 15 years, he discovered pickleball in the summer of 2020 and it became an instant obsession. Through hard work and dedication, Jake has achieved a 5.0 rating. He continues to strive for improvement, traveling across the country for tournaments and practicing multiple times a week. Jake is also a PPR certified instructor and coach. Jake grew up in Bloomington, Indiana, and graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Informatics and a specialization in Psychology. He has been working in tech for a few years but is now transitioning into a pickleball-oriented career. He has a flexible schedule and loves working with all levels of players.

Once Ann retired from 40 years of teaching, she started playing pickleball for fun and exercise. She fell in love with the sport: she practices and competes for at least two hours every day. She decided to combine her love of teaching and pickleball and become a certified instructor at Wolverine Pickleball.

Mike is a retired postmaster general who found pickleball later in life. He regularly plays in the Michigan Senior Olympics with fellow coach, Ann. 

Stay tuned for more information about Mike!

Martha Stange is a native of Ann Arbor and still lives in Scio Twp. She attended Fr Gabriel Richard HS, lettering in basketball, tennis, and softball, before earning a softball scholarship at the University of Michigan.  In addition to teaching at Wolverine, she works at Skyline High School and has started an after-school pickleball club there this year. Martha started her pickleball journey in 2015 at the YMCA and once she met Christy and Leslie in the pickleball community, she jumped in with both feet at Wolverine. Quickly entering tournaments and working her way up to the 4.5 level, she had the desire to teach and became certified through PCI in 2021. She built her foundation by coaching youth basketball and softball for 2 decades. Martha loves working with all levels, including the Wolverine kids camps. “My goal is to grow the love of the sport. I want  to meet people where they are in their pickleball journey, discuss where they want to go, and devise a plan to make it happen.” 

Leslie is a pickleball networker extraordinaire, connecting with pickleball community leaders throughout the Midwest. As the Central Michigan District Ambassador for USA Pickleball, she oversees 15 counties and 10 local ambassadors. She is a certified PPR professional coach and Pickleball Coaching International certified coach. Both Selkirk and Tyrol, leading manufacturers of pickleball gear, sponsor Leslie. She is also a member of the elite Selkirk Amped Team and competes in local, state, and national tournaments. Leslie and her husband, Cyril, have raised three daughters in Chelsea, Michigan. An animal lover, Leslie studied Wildlife Conservation at the University of Michigan.

Aaron started playing pickleball in the Fall of 2021 when his mom said “Here’s a paddle, go have fun.” He has been working on improving his game ever since. Aaron grew up in Tennessee and has loved all sports since he was a child, having played almost every sport imaginable. He is able to translate those multi-sport movements onto the pickleball court. Aaron’s education and career are a natural fit for coaching. He is currently faculty at Eastern Michigan University in the School of Health Promotion and Human Performance. He has a BS and MA in Athletic Training and a Ph.D. in Biomechanics and Movement Science. Aaron is PCI certified and enjoys working on the mechanics of different shots as well as court strategy.

Joan loves pickleball and has played avidly for the past four years. She plays in tournaments in Michigan and Florida. Joan is a certified PPR instructor and really enjoys teaching the game to others. Teaching pickleball is an extension of her career as an Ann Arbor Public Schools teacher and principal. Sports have been a lifelong passion of Joan’s, including playing college basketball at Michigan Technological University.  Her other passions are woodworking as well as boating and water sports on the Portage Chain of Lakes where she resides.

Anita is a retired educator and coach. She has been playing competitive pickleball since 2014, which includes traveling to different states to play tournaments. Spending the winters in Florida enables her to play year round, and she plays at Wolverine in the summer, as well as the court in her own yard.

Anita has a Bachelors in Elementary and Special Education, a Masters in Reading and a Masters in Education. She played volleyball and softball in college, as well as coaching high school, volleyball, basketball and softball. She coached middle school volleyball for the last 16 years of her career.  She has her PPR Professional coaching certificate and loves sharing her knowledge of pickleball with players of all ages and abilities.

Suzanne was introduced to the pickleball in 2022 at the US Open and was instantly hooked on the sport. She’s been playing ever since and is now a certified instructor through PCI. She is also a USA Pickleball local ambassador. Suzanne is a competitive 4.5 level pickleball player who spends much of her time traveling to regional and national pickleball tournaments and working with collegiate clubs to promote the sport at the collegiate level.

Stay tuned for our new instructor, Kate!