St. Joseph man celebrates birthday as ‘St. Joseph’s second-oldest pickleball player’

ST. JOSEPH, Mo (KQTV) -- Bode Sports Complex's pickleball courts were busy Friday morning to celebrate a local player's 86th birthday.

L.B. Newey is the former owner of Sack N Save on Lake Avenue in St. Joseph. Now, he is known as the second-oldest Pickleball player in the city.

"I was looking for something because I had a goal to play basketball until I was 80. I made that goal, barely," Newey said. "The REC Center over here had pickleball, so I just got into it."

Newey has stayed active at his young age of 86, which has been inspiring to many of the players who he competes against on the courts.

"He's out here playing with guys who are in...in their '20s through their '60s, and he's competing at a high level," Fellow pickleball player Brett Hall said. "That gives me an inspiration at 64 years old to say 'hey look, I think maybe I can do that too.'"

Pickleball has seen a spike in popularity in the St. Joseph community in recent years, which has helped Newey stay active, and he hopes to continue doing so as long as he is able.

"I'm celebrating not because of my birthday, but because the Lord has allowed me to be healthy enough to be able to participate," Newey said.