JOSIE LANE
Art Director
Introduce your team! Click here to add images, text and links, or connect data from your collection.
PickleMania is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to delivering social-emotional learning through sports programming in under-resourced communities across Memphis and the Mid-South. To support the sustainability of our initiatives, PickleMania has developed various revenue-generating avenues, including equipment and apparel sales, court construction projects, and special events, ensuring the continued accessibility and impact of our programs.
Meet Our Team and Partners
Board of Directors
Taylor Holden Taylor
President and Founder, PickleMania
Taylor grew up in Memphis and was a nationally ranked junior tennis player and Division I college scholar-athlete at the University of Virginia. She played tennis for over 35 years and was a teaching professional for almost 20 years. Taylor was introduced to Pickleball in 2017. The inclusive nature, intergenerational allure, and accessibility of Pickleball led Taylor to decide that Pickleball is the perfect sport through which to engage children, adults, and whole communities. Taylor dedicated her energy to combining her passion for sport and her education in Social Work; as a result, she started a non-profit called PickleMania.
The work that Taylor and the PickleMania Board of Directors do to engage the community at large is purposeful and powerful. We invite you and others to “get in the game” and be a part of this happy, healthy, meaningful movement!
Janis Finan
Board Director
Janis and her husband, Pat, have lived and worked in Memphis for the last 17 years after relocating from her native Chicago. Janis and Pat raised their 3 sons here while being active members of their community. Janis is an Art Director/Graphic Designer and has worked for over 30 years with a wide range of clients. Janis has volunteered for the non-profit organization, MICAH (Memphis Interfaith Coalition for Action Hope) from its inception and has served on many boards and committees under the Jewish Federation of Memphis. Janis is excited to assist with PickleMania and the continued growth and positive impact it is making on the community. Janis proudly states, “I am an aspiring pickleball aficionado, you could say I am addicted!"
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Chairperson
JJ is the Sales Manager of Sports and Events for the Memphis Sports Council, a subsidiary of Memphis Tourism. With his team, JJ promotes Memphis and Shelby County as one of the nation's premier year-round sports destinations. These events attract tens of thousands of sports enthusiasts the to Bluff-City Region. JJ played soccer for the University of Memphis and played 4 years of professional soccer for the United Soccer League.
Leslie Daniel
Chairperson
Born and raised in Connecticut, Leslie
moved to Memphis in 1998 after working in banking in Florida. She graduated from Florida A&M University in 1994 with a degree in Business. Leslie had a long career in banking and human resources and served in a number of human resources leadership roles at First Tennessee Bank. In 2013, she began working at the prestigious Hutchison School, most recently serving as Director of Inclusion. Currently, she is devoting her life to community service and is active as a mentor to young women. She is an active member of Phi Lambda Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She served on the following boards: Streets Ministries, a Christian youth ministry, serving at risk children in Memphis, Memphis Affiliate of Susan G. Komen and the local chapter of the American Heart Association. She is the 2023 Go Red for Women Chair. Her and her husband are building a social enterprise to enhance the physical and mental wellbeing of Memphians. She enjoys traveling with her husband John. She is a six-year breast cancer survivor.
Ashley Cowsert
Secretary
Ashley Cowsert is the Athletic Coordinator and Physical Education teacher at Believe Memphis Academy Charter School. She is from Hollister, Missouri and moved to Memphis in 2013 and has fallen in love with the city. She is a sports enthusiast and passionate about health and wellness. As a physical education teacher and coach her hope is to encourage children to find an activity they truly enjoy by introducing them to an array of movements, sports, and activities within her physical education classroom. She was able to pilot the first ever PickleMania curriculum in her classroom and it was a huge hit! She cannot wait to see the impact PickleMania has across the city!
Chalmers Valentine
Treasurer
Chalmers is a lifelong Memphian who for the last 30 years has centered her career around life insurance and estate/family planning. Currently, Chalmers works for Peyton Financial, is a Life and Qualifying Member of the Million Dollar Round Table and President Elect of NAIFA West Tennesse. Chalmers is excited and encouraged by the focus of PickleMania to provide people of all ages access to physical and mental activities that can translate into achievement in life skills.
Albert "Albo" Carruthers
Chairperson
Albo is a lifelong Memphian who owns Memphis Net & Twine. Albo graduated from Memphis University School and SMU. He served on the Board of Directors for the Metropolitan Interfaith Association (MIFA) and he is currently on the MUS Alumni Association. Albo believes that PickleBall provides an ideal platform to teach life skills to all different age groups.
Brian R. Dobbins, Esq.
Chairperson
Brian Dobbins is an executive healthcare professional with almost 30 years of experience in the healthcare industry. Over the span of his career, Brian's responsibilities have included leadership roles in member services, provider relations, provider education, provider contracting, managed care contracting; as well as in areas of compliance, quality, clinical programs, and financial management He has led Medicaid and Medicare markets for regional and national health plans around the country. Some of these plans include United HealthCare, Optum, Aetna, and Gateway Health Plan (a Highmark BlueCross BlueShield company).
Partners
