Meet Taylor Pender of Avondale Estates/Decatur

Today we’d like to introduce you to Taylor Pender.

Hi Taylor, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
Inspired by her love of pool and games, Taylor founded the Pool Turtle Bar & Game Cove. Her vision was to create a welcoming and inclusive space for people of all backgrounds to play the games they most love and to meet new people. To create the best possible third space, she teamed up with restaurant and service industry experts, successful pool hall owners, and leaders of the pool, darts, cornhole, and board game communities.

Taylor and her now-husband began playing board games together when they first started dating in north Atlanta. It wasn’t long before they were hosting weekly game nights and large board game tournaments called Gold Meeples.

But it wasn’t until their honeymoon on Tybee Island off the coast of Georgia that they discovered their love of billiards. They spent most of their days while on the island playing board games, hanging out on the beach, and playing pool at Benny’s until it closed down for the night.

They didn’t really know the rules of pool and they didn’t even know games like 9-ball existed, but they were so enamored with the game that when their honeymoon ended they joined a pool league at the Cue in St. Louis. To this day they’ll tell you the Cue is the best pool hall around and you simply must stop by if you’re ever in the St. Louis area.

They would later form the Pool Turtles APA pool team as homage to Tybee Island and the plush turtle they bought from a corner store while they were there. Alas, Tybee the Turtle is the logo for the Pool Turtle Bar & Game Cove.

I fell in love with pool because of the way it connects people and because of the pool community. And I love playing the game. I wanted to build something that would be a place I would want to go. I often felt like there wasn’t a place to play pool where everyone felt safe and welcome. As a woman in pool, it was often hard to find places that felt comfortable. I wanted to create an inclusive and safe space where everyone could engage with great hobbies and connect as a community together. And I wanted to create a space that felt like the community had ownership of the space.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
This has been the most difficult thing I’ve ever done, but thanks to so many people in the community who have had a hand in the project, we’ve been able to overcome those challenges and a build a special place. For months every day was nonstop work on permitting, building, design, licenses, and raising resources, all to make it possible to open. It’s easier to look back positively now on the large group of us working until 6am night after night doing things like painting walls, sanding table fixtures, or resubmitting permit applications, but at the time it was definitely hard and very stressful. I often wasn’t sure if we would actually ever open. But having so many great people put in so much time to make this happen is also what has helped make this place so special.

I also want to note that none of this would have been possible without the leadership in Avondale Estates. I don’t think many people realize how important local public servants and leaders are to facilitating businesses like ours. We really couldn’t have asked for a better city to partner with.

What matters most to you?
Building a community that makes people’s lives better. It sounds trite, but when I was struggling with my own personal challenges, a great community at the pool hall we went to in St. Louis played a major role in helping me. I want the Pool Turtle to be a place where people meet lifelong friends and feel truly connected to a community they care about.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thepoolturtle.com
• Instagram: @thepoolturtleatl
• Facebook: @thepoolturtleatl

Image Credits
Michael McClellan