Pickleball
Meet our Charbarian
Pickleballers
Join us in celebrating the hardworking staff at Char Bar who bring our pickleball operations to life! With their dedication and passion, they’ve turned Char Bar into a local hub for pickleball enthusiasts.
Kramer Sneed
Kramer, originally from North Carolina (Go Tar Heels!), is new to the Kansas City metropolitan area and is thrilled to be here at Char Bar. At 35 years young, he has half a lifetime of athletic experience in many different areas, including being drafted by the NY Yankees in 2010. Following his eight-year pro baseball career, he has gravitated to Pickleball as his new passion, and is excited to teach this lifetime sport to individuals of all ages and skill levels.
Jake Smith
Jake is a seasoned entrepreneur with a successful track record of opening over 30 companies, demonstrating his ability to identify opportunities and drive growth. Born and raised in Kansas City, he spent time in Florida and Arizona before returning to the Kansas City Metro area, drawn back by his love for the local community and its renowned CharBar BBQ. In addition to his entrepreneurial ventures, Jake was able to pursue golf and now pickleball, specializing in youth and beginner instruction. He is dedicated to creating an engaging and enjoyable learning environment, fostering a love for the sport while helping students develop their skills
Aaron Lane
Aaron, 26, is an Emporia, Kansas native with a sport and recreation management degree from Fort Hays State with a passion for growing the game of pickleball and the distinct skill of teaching the game. Aaron is a great coach for beginner level players at any age who are excited to take the next step in their pickleball careers. After being a 3-year letter winner, and State qualifier for the men’s tennis program at Emporia High, the transition to Pickleball was a smooth and inevitable one.
Morgan Tennant
Morgan, 27, was born and raised in Maryland and moved to Leavenworth, Kansas, in 2021. She was a Division 1 volleyball and tennis player with a bachelor’s in Psychology and Kinesiology and a master’s in education focused on sports leadership. She started playing pickleball while she was the graduate assistant coach for volleyball and tennis at a d3 in Texas and grew to love the game. After coaching volleyball for a year at Saint Mary’s, she decided to stop coaching college after sustaining too many concussions and grew to love pickleball more.
Annie Saunders
Hi! My name is Annie, I’m 23, from Kansas City, and I am currently studying Political Science at UMKC. I grew up playing tennis which helped with my transition to Pickleball. I have been playing for a handful of months now, and I am excited for more opportunities to represent Char Bar at tournaments. I work with guests of all skill levels to help improve their game!
Malia Shimabukuro
Aloha! I’m Malia, I was born in Kansas City and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii. I competed in college ice hockey and lacrosse in Nebraska. With fivers in college athletics, I am now the assistant women’s lacrosse coach at William Jewell College where I love mentoring student-athletes. In my free time, I enjoy playing pickleball competitively, a passion that started in 2023. I treasure the sense of community in the sport and the meaningful relationships I have built along the way. That is why I enjoy working at Char Bar, to continue growing and developing relationships on and off the pickleball courts!