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CityLax Gala
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CityLax Gala Recap – GTG in NYC

The 2016 CityLax Gala went down on Tuesday evening at the New York Athletic Club, and the NYC community truly came together to celebrate ten great years of growth in the areas of boys and girls public school lacrosse.

Of course, celebrating the past was far from the only reason people came together! The annual CityLax Gala is also the main fundraising event for CityLax, and the proceeds each year ensure that more kids in the five boroughs will be able to play this great game. 10 years ago there were six HS programs in all of NYC. Now there are 52, and middle school lacrosse is also growing. Without CityLax, none of that happens.

CityLax Gala
Photo Credit: Renzo Spirit Buffalo

As a CityLax volunteer, I find the event to be particularly touching, as it shows that so many other people sincerely care about this growth effort. Seeing all this support in one place is always refreshing.

(If you could not attend, but still want to Donate to CityLax, you can do so HERE!)

This year, CityLax honored two men, Eamon McAnaney and Pat Coleman, as CityLax Hall of Famers, and both men are incredibly deserving of the honor. Paul Carcaterra was the emcee for the evening, and he did a great job of keeping people interested and engaged. Chris Tiernan, from Throne Lacrosse, dyed up the award heads for Pat and Eamon, and they came out great!

CityLax Gala mat levine john moser
Photo Credit: Renzo Spirit Buffalo

Pat Coleman has run Greenwich Youth Lacrosse for decades, and when Mat Levine of CityLax asked some local towns to help support the CityLax mission 10 years ago, Pat (and Greenwich) jumped right in. Since then, their support has never flagged, and GYL continues to play a big part in the growth of the game in New York City. Pat has done a wonderful job in Greenwich, but has never hesitated to give back elsewhere. He is a special kind of person.

Eamon McAnaney is another guy who stepped up when asked, and has never let off the gas. Eamon is a NYC resident, grew up here, and supports the game however he can. He often mentions CityLax and Doc’s NYC Lacrosse on his broadcasts on ESPN, and he has been the emcee of many past Gala events. He constantly supports New York City lacrosse, and it was very cool to see Eamon introduced by Zach Lehman, the original founder of MetroLacrosse in Boston, and Eamon’s coach in high school.

Who else was in attendance?

A better question would be who WASN’T in attendance!!!!

@robpannell3 in the house last night @citylaxnyc Gala. @worldlacrossefoundation

A photo posted by @caseypowell22 on Apr 27, 2016 at 2:54am PDT

Casey Powell, Rob Pannell, Max Seibald, Tyler Fiorito, Will Yeatman, Chris Passavia, Tony Greer, Vinnie Sombrotto, Brooks Sweet, Howie Borkan, Jack Kaley, many of the New York Lizards owners and players, and a hundred other well recognized names. It was a huge night of lacrosse, and hardly anything but the sport was discussed. For anyone in NYC who loves lacrosse and has never been to a CityLax Gala, you are really missing out!

CityLax also showcased a great video during the event, which went through some of the history of NYC lacrosse, focused on the present, and showed what the future could bring. It was a touching and well done piece.

2016 CityLax Gala Video

The live and silent auctions went well, and many people left with prizes for their donations. College helmets, gloves, game tickets, wine, golf outings, and a number of other items were up for grabs, and some of the bidding got pretty intense… in a good way of course!

The evening was a truly wonderful experience for any lover of lacrosse. The conversation was passionate and informed, the crowd was there for the right reasons, and the New York City Lacrosse Community continued to do good in the world, and in their own backyard.