RANCHO MURIETA, CA (MPG) - The Rancho Murieta Pickleball Club and local firefighters teamed up on May 17 for a tournament benefiting the Firefighters Burn Institute.

The event raised $3,055, which included a $500 contribution from the Kiwanis Club of Rancho Murieta.

The Sacramento Area Firefighters Local 522 established the burn institute at U.C. Davis Medical Center a year after a jet crashed into the crowded Farrell’s Ice Cream Parlor in Sacramento in 1972, killing 23 people and burning many others. Since then, the burn institute has expanded its mission to include burn recovery for survivors and their families, burn research, public education, and fire and burn prevention. 

In a brief ceremony following the tournament, Club President Bob Kauffman recognized Serda Folk, who proposed the idea for the event last year. 

“She had a plan and an idea, and she asked us about it,” he said. “It was successful last year, and it was even more successful this year. She’s got a band going and even brought in Chick-fil-A.”

Kauffman invited Joe Pick, executive director of the Firefighters Burn Institute, to step forward.

“Between the $500 from Kiwanis and the rest from the Pickleball Club, we’ve raised $3,055,” Pick said as the pickleball players clapped and cheered.

 “I want to thank the Rancho Murieta community and the pickleball club for participating,” Pick responded. “We appreciate you.”

Kauffman also recognized the club’s maintenance committee for preparing the courts, the social committee “who got all this beautiful food for us to eat,” and the tournament committee, which organized the teams and arranged last-minute substitutions when players had to cancel.

Kauffman also introduced members of the Witch Doctors, a Rancho Murieta band that kept the tournament rocking throughout the day. He acknowledged Brad Silverbush, owner of Chick-fil-A Rivergate Cordova, who donated 50 sandwiches for the event. The club wrapped up the celebration by awarding medals to the teams that placed first, second and third.

Pick, who has served as executive director of the Firefighters Burn Institute since 2021, is no stranger to Rancho Murieta. During his three years as a fire captain at Station 59, he began participating in the annual Murieta Village Christmas Golf Parade, donning a Santa suit and an old-fashioned fire helmet. He continued returning for nine more years—even after transferring to another station and eventually retiring—always recruiting on-duty firefighters to join in. In 2021, he brought the Firefighters Burn Institute’s truck and float to take part in the final year of the parade.