Greg Jaloszynski played basketball and baseball at Eastern Nazarene College on the South Shore, taught phys ed and worked as an athletic director, and still keeps in touch with his elementary school coaches. Twenty-five years ago he and his brother started a youth basketball program in New York's Hudson Valley with 85 kids. By 2020 it had close to 500, and today 12th Rock offers cross country, track and field, volleyball, rugby, archery and soccer, with basketball and flag football coming back.
In this episode of The PR Bunker Podcast, Greg talks about what coaches owe their athletes, how a faith-driven organization measures impact, and how 12th Rock is paying for a $30 million building.
A few takeaways from the conversation:
Kids in sports spend more time with their coaches than with their parents, and Greg says that's an unbelievable responsibility. When you're driven only by winning, it's temporary. The real win is what happens when a kid walks off the field for the last time and knows there's a next. One of his former players called after ten years and asked to have lunch because he was coaching now and wanted to know how Greg built his practice plans.
12th Rock is building an indoor complex of about 152,000 square feet with a 200 meter track, 1,200 seats, a turf field, basketball courts, classrooms and a commercial kitchen. They're about $6.5 million in and have borrowed only $200,000. The rest has come from two or three hundred donors and gifts in kind, with the largest single gift at $150,000. The town agreed to let them phase construction as money arrives, and if the funding comes in they could open in 15 months.
The name comes from Joshua 3 and 4, when the Israelites crossed the Jordan and stacked 12 stones on the shore as a reminder of God's faithfulness. Greg says they wanted a name that tells their testimony without sounding churchy, and that most families come for the quality of the sports experience and stay because they feel safe there.
12th Rock is already a USATF and World Athletics sanctioned throws facility, and this fall it's hosting a javelin clinic with Olympian Curtis Thompson and a hammer clinic with three-time Olympian Rudy Winkler. Athletes are driving in from Virginia, Maine and Massachusetts. Follow 12th Rock Sports on social media, or connect with Greg on LinkedIn.
Listen to the full episode above.
Reading is the hello. SBGA is where we get to yes.
What is 12th Rock?
12th Rock is a faith-driven youth sports organization in New York's Hudson Valley that Greg Jaloszynski and his brother started 25 years ago with a basketball program. It now offers six to eight sports and expects to reach four to five thousand athletes this year.
How is 12th Rock paying for its new indoor sports complex?
Mostly through donations and gifts in kind. About $6.5 million has been raised and spent so far with only $200,000 borrowed, and the town is letting construction move in phases as funding comes in toward an estimated $30 million total.
What does Greg Jaloszynski tell parents about youth sports?
He says sports teach resilience, toughness and how to lead, and that they teach kids how to lose and fail well. You'll lose more than you win, and learning from those moments helps you win more.
Have a project, campaign, or comms challenge in mind?
Want to be a guest on the PR Bunker podcast?
Reach out and let’s talk.
