Sports

World-Renowned Lacrosse Player John Christmas to Host Free Sports Clinic in Brooklyn

Christmas, in conjunction with the Brooklyn Crescents youth lacrosse league will participate in the 9th Annual Hip Hop Festival, July 13

LXM Pro and two-time USILA All-American Lacrosse player John Christmas will be at Brooklyn Bridge Park Pier 5 on July 13 hosting a free Lacrosse clinic to share some of his techniques and trade secrets to aspiring young players of the game.

The event is in conjunction with the 9th Annual Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival's Family Day, and the Brooklyn Crescents, the largest and longest running youth lacrosse program in the borough.

“We have seen how skate culture and Hip-Hop have merged to create a new and unique consumer. I think the marriage of Hip-Hop and lacrosse is an untapped idea that will have a similar impact,” said the Hip Hop Festival Founder and Executive Director Wes Jackson.

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“John Christmas is always looking for opportunities to grow the game in non-traditional places across the world,” said Daniel Sheff, co-founder of the Brooklyn Crescents.

He’s one of the few, professional African-American lacrosse players in the world, who is also a successful entrepreneur and great ambassador of the game."

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Sheff’s excitement about his team’s partnership with the Hip Hop festival and John Christmas is palpable. And it’s understandable once you learn about the team’s journey and its mission to make lacrosse more accessible in non-traditional places.

Sheff co-founded the Brooklyn Crescents in 2006 with just 30 kids – boys and girls – hailing from neighborhoods all across Brooklyn where most of them had never heard of lacrosse, much less desired to play the sport.

After months and years of tireless door-knocking, school visits and word-of-mouth campaigning, Scheff and his team of dedicated coaches have grown the “little league” team to more than 300 players, many of whom are now attending boarding schools and top colleges on lacrosse scholarships.

There are annual membership dues, but last year, the Crescents gave away 25 scholarships. As a non-profit, the Crescents fundraise year-round. And with their recent new partnership with Excellence Boys Charter School in Bed-Stuy, their fundraising efforts continue to accelerate, as more and more young members sign up.

“All we’re trying to do is create opportunities. None of this money goes into our pockets,” said Scheff. “We’ve never turned a kid away since the inception of the program; we’ve always found a way to raise money for kids who can’t afford dues or pay for equipment.

“The goal is not to just create great lacrosse players, it’s to create strong men and women who will succeed in academics and their professional life. So we emailed John Christmas, and when he heard our story, this was a no-brainer for him,” said Scheff.

Christmas also will be designing a limited edition line of t-shirts and hats for the event from his signature apparel line, Encore, which is also a sponsor of the Hip Hop Festival.

The clinic runs from 8:15 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. and is open to participants, grades 1-12 across all five boroughs. Participants of the festival get 50 percent off their tickets if they participate in the clinic. And it’s free for kids 12 and under.

After the clinic, the youth and their parents will walk across the bike path at Pier 5 to participate in more activities and Hip-Hop performances from EPMD, Redman, Pusha T, Dizzy Wright, Soul Understate and more.

“You think of lacrosse as a homogeneous group, as some think the same of Hip-Hop,” said Jackson. “The truth is both have always been wonderful patchworks. I think John and the team at Encore realize this better than anyone and are about to blow the roof off. I like us being a part of that."

For more information on the July 13 clinic and/or to register, go here.


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