Brandan Jackson first discovered pickleball at the same place he spends many of his days serving his community: the fire station.
Jackson, a firefighter with the Kansas City, Kansas Fire Department, first picked up a paddle about five years ago after a court was set up at the station. What started as a way to stay active between shifts quickly became something much bigger.
“The fire station, we created a court and ever since then I’ve been hooked,” Jackson said.
That passion for the game eventually led Jackson to create the Black Pickleball Club of Kansas City, better known as BPCKC, one of the fastest-growing pickleball communities in the Kansas City area.
Originally, Jackson was simply looking for other people who shared the same love for the sport. As he spent more time playing around local courts and tournaments, he often found himself as one of the only Black players there. He admits those experiences sometimes came with pressure to prove himself in spaces where he didn’t always feel fully comfortable.
“It felt nerve-racking at times,” Jackson said. “Like I had to overachieve at times to get respect.”
Instead of stepping away from the sport, he decided to create something inside of it. Initially, Jackson tried to recruit some of his friends to play, but when they weren’t on board with his vision, he decided to “sound the alarm” to the community to see if there were other local players who loved the sport as much as he did.
“I wanted to see if there was anyone else like me that loved the game and loved to play,” he said. “And to introduce the game to more of us.”
At first, Jackson thought BPCKC would stay relatively small. Just a few people meeting up to play pickleball together.
“I truly thought it would just be an intimate meetup,” he said.
As it turns out, there were a lot more Black pickleball players in the area than he expected. More than 100 people attended one of BPCKC’s early meetups after Brandan promoted the event online.
“Seeing that many people there was surreal,” he said. “I was just so grateful that so many people had seen my vision.”
That vision has continued growing ever since.
Today, BPCKC has become known throughout Kansas City for creating an atmosphere that feels different from a typical open play session. Music plays around the courts. New players rotate in alongside experienced players. More experienced players help newcomers learn the game.People stay after matches talking, laughing, eating, and building friendships long after games end.
For Jackson, helping newer players feel comfortable matters just as much as the competition itself. Pickleball can feel intimidating for beginners, especially when players walk into highly competitive environments for the first time. BPCKC has intentionally tried to create the opposite experience.
“Meet them where they’re at,” Jackson said. “Explain how the sessions go and teach them as best I can.”
His advice to new players is simple: focus on enjoying the game first. The rest will work itself out.
That approach has helped BPCKC become about much more than pickleball. The club has become a place where people build friendships, reconnect with movement and competition, and find a sense of belonging through sports and community.
As pickleball continues growing nationally, Jackson believes representation inside the sport matters more than ever.
“For a sport like pickleball it’s huge,” he said. “It’s not an established televised sport on the scale of basketball or football or any of those sports. Representation will put it on the map the way it should.”
Local coverage from KSHB and The Kansas City Defender has highlighted BPCKC’s impact in creating more visibility and inclusivity within Kansas City’s pickleball community. For Jackson, though, the biggest accomplishment has been watching the relationships and connections grow through the club itself.
“The community I’ve created and how many connections I’ve made from this,” he said. “It’s amazing.”
At just 25 years old, that focus on caring for people carries into every part of his life. Along with running BPCKC, Jackson also coaches high school basketball at Olathe East while continuing his work as a firefighter.
“They connect with me because being a firefighter requires you to care for others and work and care for your community,” Jackson said. “And the same applies to the community I’ve created with BPC.”
Building BPCKC has also taught Jackson a lot about leadership, responsibility, and what it takes to consistently bring people together.
As the club has grown, so has the amount of work happening behind the scenes. Organizing events, creating welcoming experiences for new players, and maintaining the culture BPCKC has become known for all require constant attention. But for Jackson, the impact continues making the effort worth it.
“Just the many people that come up to me afterwards and say how much fun they had and how grateful they are that I started this,” he said. “During the meetups I’m always stressed out but those gestures make me take a step back and appreciate what’s happening.”
What started with a court at the fire station has become something much bigger than pickleball. For Brandan Jackson, and for the many players in Kansas City, BPCKC has become a place where competition, connection, and community all exist in the same space.
