PRPC Connections - Getting to know...

DYAN Y.

By Morgan C.

If you’ve spent time around the Paso Robles pickleball community, chances are you’ve crossed paths with Dyan - and if you have, you probably already know what her friends and teammates mean when they describe her as warm, friendly, and full of positivity.

Dyan moved to the Central Coast in July 2014 from Upland, California, transferring from her work in Diamond Bar to the state hospital in Atascadero. Her professional life has been rooted in service: she is a clinical psychologist who works with a forensic population in an all-male hospital setting, and after a long and meaningful career in state service, she plans to retire next year. Along the way, she also maintained a private practice and consulting business — a pretty remarkable balancing act.

Dyan grew up in a family of four girls and remains closely connected to the people she loves. She shared that one of her closest family relationships is with her nephew Robert, who lived with her for several years before moving to Orange County. Some club members may even recognize his name, since he took up pickleball too.

Dyan is now in her ninth year of playing pickleball, having started in 2018 after being introduced to the game by someone she met through Match.com. That may be one of the more unexpected pickleball origin stories out there! Before pickleball, tennis was her favorite sport growing up, and she also played a lot of softball. These days, though, pickleball seems to have claimed most of the available space in her athletic heart.

Off the court, Dyan has a wide range of interests. She loves gardening, baking, cooking, making jewelry, thrift shopping, and hiking both at the shore and in the mountains. She recently tried paddleboarding for the first time and found that she really enjoyed it. Her ideal getaway is somewhere tropical, and in retirement she hopes to travel to Italy to research her Yacovelli ancestry, which traces back to Sicily.

As for her pickleball “superpower”? Dyan says it’s running for the drop ball in the kitchen — along with her baked goodies, which sounds like a combination that could make anyone popular fast. Her favorite post-game refreshment is a simple ice-cold orange, and if she had walk-up music, it would be any song that gets her moving and makes it impossible not to dance.

She also has a sense of adventure. One of the most interesting turns in her life came when she made the bold decision to relocate to California with a friend, only to find the plan had completely changed mid-drive. After getting over the Rocky Mountains, the duo turned back

for her friend to get back home. But Dyan wasn't going to let a little detour stop her, so she got her friend back home.  She then turned around once again heading west and making the drive to California in 4 days and built a new life on her own. She calls this one of the best decisions she ever made — the one that led her to graduate school and a deeply rewarding career.

When she’s enjoying Paso Robles, Dyan names Catch as her favorite restaurant and says any place with live music and a warm, cozy atmosphere feels like a good place to relax. When visitors come to town, she loves showing them beautiful places along the coastline, including Cambria and even farther-flung favorites like Newport Beach.

But perhaps what stands out most is what the pickleball club means to her. Dyan speaks about the PRPC community with deep affection and gratitude, describing it as a place filled with dear friendships, support, laughter, and lots of hugs. She speaks about the club not just as a place to play, but as a true community — one where people show up for each other in both joyful times and difficult ones. It’s clear that for Dyan, pickleball is about much more than the game. It’s about belonging and family.