Harlem Lacrosse shines in Roxbury

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Suppose you were traveling past the Ray and Joan Kroc Community Center on August 5 and saw hundreds of young people on the field directly across the street from the facility participating in a special lacrosse clinic. In that case, you may have asked yourself, “What is this?” The answer is the fourth Harlem Lacrosse Community Clinic, sponsored by the New Balance Foundation and the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.

The brainchild of state Representative Simon Cataldo has taken root in Boston’s communities of color, yielding spectacular results. Cataldo started Harlem Lacrosse back in 2008 and watched it spread to communities across America. By the time the program reached the neighborhoods of Dorchester, Mattapan and East Boston in 2017, it had become a well-established entity.

Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden is one of many people who volunteer his services to this program.

For the last two years, 35 grads of the Harlem Lacrosse program have gone to college. PHOTO: SUFFOLK COUNTY DA

“I played lacrosse. My son plays the game. It is a part of me,” said Hayden. “Indigenous people (Native Canadian and Native North American people) invented this sport called the ‘medicine game,’ back in the 16th century. There is a simple principle to lacrosse: Keep the stick in your hand. Once you can do that, you can develop your skills, learn the rules and nuances of this game.”

Hayden admits that his partnership with people like Pat Cronin, executive director of Harlem Lacrosse Boston chapter, our unsung hero; Chris Worrell, state representative for the 5th District of Dorchester /Roxbury; and Jim Borgehsani, chief of communications for Suffolk County, are critical to the success of this program.

“It is particularly rare for teenagers to take up a sport, but that is what has happened with this program since its inception as Metro Lacrosse back in 2000 to its merger with Harlem Lacrosse [in] 2017, said Cronin. “I am proud to say that I am part of the link between the two programs. Metro needed to grow, and Harlem needed to expand. It’s been a beautiful marriage. After playing lacrosse throughout my life, including four years of club lacrosse at UMass-Amherst, I felt the need to give back to the game that has done so much for me.”

Chris Worrell and Jim Borghesani come to this scenario from different perspectives. 

“What many people fail to understand is that it is easier to get a scholarship to college and the corporate boardroom by playing this game,” said Worrell. “More exposure to the game in communities of color will produce major results. Seeing the joy on the faces of the young people who turned out for our clinic was something to cherish. The excitement on their faces, from the first time ever holding a lacrosse stick in their hands, makes our work worthwhile.”

DA Kevin Hayden, center, with sons Jordan (left) and Carson (right) have all played the sport. PHOTO: SUFFOLK COUNTY DA

Borghesani adds, “Never heard of lacrosse growing up, but after watching hundreds of young boys and girls show up and give full attention to the instructors, it makes me know that this clinic was a great event.”

Hayden, Pat Cronin, Chris Worrell and Jim Borghesani, as well as every instructor and volunteer, sing the praises of New Balance for its unwavering support of the program. But there is a more profound commitment to the future of the young people who graduate from the program.

“For the last two years, all of our 35 graduates have gone on to college,” said Hayden. “If there are financial barriers to overcome, we have found the money to complete the funding for our graduates to attend college. That is a very important component of our program. For our younger students, we have hired 400 Uber rides to transport them from home to practice to home, ensuring their safety and showing them our support for their participation in Harlem Lacrosse.”

“This sport has a bright future, and our young people of color can be a big part of it,” said Worrell.

“This sport provides access to opportunity and resources to people of color,” said Hayden. “It is one of the fastest-growing sports in America, and I want our young people to take full advantage of helping to grow the game. It is that important.”

Lacrosse was introduced to the Olympic Games in 1904 and dropped in 1908. Over a century later, it will return to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games. The Harlem Lacrosse program aims to develop young, talented individuals of high character who can advance to the highest level of the sport.

That would be the ultimate dream of Representative Cataldo, who represents the 14th Middlesex District and is founder of Harlem Lacrosse.

“The principal value that the program offers to our students is academic advancement and support that helps young people grow to be strong adults,” he said, adding, “I started Harlem Lacrosse at the Frederick Douglass Academy … to give my students an activity that would challenge their minds and bodies. It was a rambunctious group of students with high energy [who] needed something to motivate them to do their schoolwork. I told them if they did their schoolwork, they could play lacrosse. They accepted the challenge. And from our first practice on a concrete handball court, Harlem Lacrosse was born. Today, we have hundreds of graduates playing lacrosse at major colleges in America. That was my goal back in 2000 — to build a special program.”

Steve Cataldo’s vision has been fulfilled and continues to grow.