As a former collegiate player at Princeton, Bruce Lincoln credits much of his lacrosse success to the skill development he experienced as a youth player in Lutherville, Md. His local youth program provided the type of guidance and coaching that he now wishes to pay forward to young players in New York City.
Earlier this year, Lincoln launched Uptown Lacrosse to specifically serve youth in Harlem and the other neighborhoods in Upper Manhattan.
“The idea of Uptown Lacrosse is to create a recreational youth lacrosse program similar to what I was exposed to in Lutherville, and similar to what a bunch of my friends were exposed to on Long Island,” Lincoln said.
On an indoor court at the Madison Square Boys and Girls Club, located just a jump shot away from the famous basketball hub of Rucker Park, Lincoln and his corps of volunteer coaches are working hard to help put lacrosse on the local sports menu. They call their game L-Ball, a non-contact 3-on-3 version of lacrosse that can be played on the hardwood.
Uptown Lacrosse launched this past February with a large community event at the Police Athletic League’s Harlem Center, with local public officials and plenty of volunteer coaches on-hand to kick-start the new venture.
“We wanted to have an opportunity to give kids and their families an initial exposure to the sport,” Lincoln said.
Uptown followed that with two open house events in March before moving more fully into its regular programming in April, with weekly games and skill sessions on Saturday mornings. The nonprofit offers lacrosse opportunities for free to local families, focusing on fun and skill development for kids between the ages of five and 12.
Equipment support is being provided from, among others, STX and USA Lacrosse.
“Bruce is very committed to growing youth lacrosse in Harlem,” explained Harry Jacobs, regional director for USA Lacrosse who coordinated the equipment grant from the sport’s national governing body. “This is a tough space, but Bruce is the real deal. He’s a lacrosse champion.”
Lincoln notes that Uptown Lacrosse places a high priority on teaching game fundamentals, from catching and throwing, to cradling and shooting. Drills and exercises reinforce these skills, and the 3-v-3 games allow the players to demonstrate their progress. He says the ultimate goal is to prepare youngsters for school-based play that comes with middle school.
“We want to create kids that are exposed to the sport early enough with instructional support so that by 4th and 5th grade, they are very good stick handlers,” Lincoln said. “By really focusing on the fundamentals and skill development, when they move into the middle school environment, they will already have a strong background in the game.”
He also emphasizes one other critical component of the Uptown program.
“The key thing about Uptown Lacrosse is it’s about having fun,” said Lincoln, who previously served as executive director of Harlem Lacrosse New York. “We’re not trying to produce pro lacrosse players. We’re just trying to spread the reach of the game so more kids can enjoy lacrosse.”
How to Get a Grant
As a beneficiary of USA Lacrosse grants, Uptown Lacrosse gained access to key resources to help grow its program and get sticks in the hands of new players. Could your organization benefit from the USA Lacrosse National Grant Program? Click here to apply for a grant before the July 31 deadline.
