BACKHAND & SCORE! The L.E. Phillips Senior Center in Eau Claire serves as a hub for specialized programming designed to keep aging locals active and involved in their community. Today, its ping pong and "neuro sports" offerings continue to grow in numbers and support brain wellness for participants impacted by Parkinson's, dementia, Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases.

Unless you are already among the regular participants who gather at Eau Claire’s L.E. Phillips Senior Center on Tuesday and Thursdays, you might not know about this remarkable offering hosted at the community site.

For the past several years, the senior center has served as a hub for a specialized program featuring targeted exercises designed to energize synaptic connections, boost cognitive function and keep its guests active.

Its ping pong program – yes, you read that right! – has become a catalyst toward increased health and motor function for its regular participants. Chippewa Valley local and Healthy Eau Claire organizer, Andrew Pougher, has brought new meaning to the rec sport by using it to bolster brain wellness.

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Thanks to the success of the ping pong programming at the local senior center, Andrew has built up the Healthy Eau Claire initiative. He intends to expand its organizing efforts beyond the L.E. Phillips Senior Center and see it become a bridge between affected communities and healthcare providers.

Forthcoming gatherings supported by the organization, such as the United For Parkinson’s event on Oct. 16, will serve to help people easily access vital information on housing, funding, city resources, daycare centers, the Aging Disability Resource Center of Eau Claire County and more.

His story, like many of the participants or guests at the weekly ping pong gatherings, is one affected by Parkinson’s. Andrew has watched his own father navigate the incurable brain disorder which affects one’s movement, balance and coordination due to loss of dopamine-producing neurons.

“I watched what happened – the effect of Parkinson’s – to all of us and I decided to change my career path,” Andrew, previously a creative digital designer and information technology (IT) developer, said. “All we can do is offer as much comfort, information and support as possible with a disease that so far does not have a cure.”

Of course, the neuro sports sessions aren’t exclusive to players with Parkinson’s. Andrew welcomes any locals affected by dementia, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), among other cognitive issues, to pick up a paddle.

“I think it’s really cool to see new individuals come in and slowly become more comfortable and confident. It’s more than just playing ping pong.” –Kylie LeMay, volunteer at the L.E. Phillips Senior Center

Andrew Pougher (pictured left) welcomes all ages, genders and persons with neurological conditions to attend his weekly ping pong sessions. Beyond the games, he offers data tracking to monitor health of guests and their neurological improvements over time – including but not limited to balance and hand-eye coordination.

Spouses, partners and caregivers, too, tag along during these weekly sessions. Andrew said they have turned ping pong to an organic support network where attendees connect naturally without the rigid feel of a formal gathering.

“I know what the other families are going through too,” Andrew noted. “Whether (guests) are shuffling with their feet, they’re struggling to maneuver, they struggle with staircases and they start to lose their voice – they still show up. They make the effort.

“That’s inspirational to me and everybody around us,” he said.

A typical ping pong session at the center includes around eight participants at a time, to ensure the safety of all participants and opportunity for quality one-on-one attention. Volunteers – including Kylie LeMay, a graduate student in the exercise physiology program at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire – are also available to assist.

Then, it’s time for “warm ups” before the official games begin. Andrew customizes sessions to each individual’s needs and physical boundaries. If a participant is not feeling well or is just having a bad day, Andrew adjusts the plan without question.

Locals of all physical abilities gather around the tables for the game to begin. There’s competition aplenty, Andrew laughed, and the atmosphere always feels social and lively. Laughter fills the air as participants line up to hit and fire balls back and forth across the table, practicing their hand-eye coordination and dexterity.

“I think it’s really cool to see new individuals come in and slowly become more comfortable and confident,” Kylie said. “It’s more than just playing ping pong.”

“I’ve built a lot of relationships through the group, and I really look forward to seeing everyone each week, or whenever I’m able to help,” she said.

Ping pong sessions grew into tournaments, Andrew said, after he noticed the participants’ growing competitiveness and sharpening skills. He collects data to graphically track these skills and identify patterns in progress, from hand-eye coordination to balance.

Following the success of the senior center's first tournament, Andrew believes this is just the beginning.

“As with any event, I was thinking ‘is anyone gonna show up? But it got busier, busier and busier,” Andrew said. “We had a good turnout and now I’m thinking I want to run (tournaments) again on an annual basis or maybe even quarterly.”

For local participants, ping pong has become more than a rec game – an exchange of valuable resources, of much-needed laughter and renewed purpose for all who join “for the love of the game.”

Ping pong sessions are hosted from 11:45am-12:45pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the L.E. Phillips Senior Center (1616 Bellinger St., Eau Claire). Visit the Healthy Eau Claire webpage online or social media page (@healthyeauclaire) to see its regular ping pong participants in action.