When Opportunity Knocks: How I Bought a Training Facility.

"Have you ever seen the movie We Bought a Zoo? Well, I just bought a baseball and softball training facility."

What happens when parental support meets opportunity? In this deeply personal episode, I share my recent decision to purchase a training facility near our home—a move that aligns perfectly with my triplets entering ninth grade and their growing passion for baseball, softball, and volleyball. 

This acquisition represents something far more significant than a business venture. It embodies the core philosophy I advocate for all sports parents: creating environments where our children can flourish. When our kids display the magical combination of interest, skill, and passion for a sport, our responsibility shifts from spectator to facilitator.

For some families, this might mean traveling farther for the right team or investing in specialized coaching. For others, it could involve making sacrifices to provide better competitive opportunities. Whatever form it takes, our role as parents is to honestly assess our children's abilities and desires, then surround them with the support systems that maximize their potential for success.

The reality is that age or circumstances will eventually determine when competitive play ends for everyone. Until that moment arrives, I believe in giving our young athletes every reasonable opportunity to develop—not just as players, but as individuals who understand discipline, passion, and excellence. What opportunities are you creating for your young athlete today?

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Chapters

• 0:00 We Bought a Training Facility
• 1:30 Creating Opportunities for Success
• 3:40 My Personal Journey and Decision
• 5:40 Questions for Parents to Consider
• 6:50 Go All In Until Age Decides

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Have you ever seen the movie we Bought a Zoo? Well, I just bought a baseball and softball training facility. Welcome back to Raising Athletes. Raising Athletes the things that causes all dads to go bald and moms to buy minivans. Empowering parents to help their kids succeed. Welcome back to Raising Athletes.

Speaker 1: 0:21

So there was a movie that came out in 2011 called we Bought a Zoo, and I remember when it came out, I was all jazzed to see it with my family and I did. And then, when my kids got a little bit older, we then also like we rented at home, whatever and we saw it, and I remember, after watching the movie, we were all like, okay, let's go see if there are any zoos for sale. It was a great movie and for us, like we literally, literally like we have chickens and goats and rabbits and fish and birds and dogs, whatever. We have a lot of animals. So we're already sort of like halfway there. So when we saw that movie, we were into the idea of buying a zoo. Now, that wasn't a realistic um ambition, um, I don't know if that really should have been on our bucket list, but I did just buy a training facility and this is a perfect topic for today's discussion here on raising athletes, because something that is a theme for parents is our job is to surround our kids with as much opportunity as they can so that they can be successful. That's what we want to do, whether that be you know, give giving them an opportunity to be on a great team, or giving them an opportunity to to train with the with great instructors and trainers, or maybe signing them up for showcases and clinics and workshops and introducing them to people. As parents, we want to surround our kids with those type of opportunities so they've got the best chance at success. Now, this is not about trying to inspire people to buy a training facility, like me, but the point is is when our kids express interest in something and that interest matches their skill and ability, and then that also, then you can layer in their personal passion. Once you have that conversation with them, well then, as parents, it's our job to help our kids get there, not sort of leave them to be independent and assume that they know exactly what they need to do and they know how to accomplish these goals that they have, but to come alongside them and surround them with opportunities so that it gives them the best chance of success, and it's like some of the things that I mentioned earlier. That could be maybe we travel a little bit further, make some sacrifices to get them on a fantastic team with an amazing coach, with incredible teammates, or maybe it's investing a little bit into an incredible instructor.

Speaker 1: 2:46

Maybe your son or your daughter expressed interest in a position that maybe you're not an expert in. Well, all right, maybe make the investment into giving them that level of training so that they can refine this new sort of skill that they love, that they have raw talent, but maybe they're a little green, that they are developing passion, but they need someone to focus it a little bit. And, as parents, that's our job. Our job is to help our kids to be successful in all areas of life, not just as an athlete, but also in academics as well. Maybe your child is an academic, maybe your child is an athlete, regardless of what route they choose as parents I in academics as well. Maybe your child is an academic, maybe your child is an athlete. Regardless of what route they choose as parents, I want to encourage you to surround your kids with as much support as you can so that it gives your child the best chance of success.

Speaker 1: 3:37

So in this case, an opportunity presented itself to me that I just could not pass by. The timing in my life and in my family's life it's perfect. My kids are in ninth grade. As you guys know by now, I've got triplets. My kids are in ninth grade and my daughters love sports and they're incredibly skilled and they've also developed that passion. They love baseball, they love softball and they love volleyball. That's their world right now. And when this opportunity presented itself to take ownership of a training facility that's close to where we live, it was perfect, and so we jumped on it. And we're so excited about the future of owning this place but letting it be a home for my kids, but also being a place that I can really just help the community of Long Island, all these young athletes, to learn to play, to grow, to develop and maybe refine to the point where they get to play beyond their years of middle school and high school, maybe college and beyond. And now I get to be a part of that journey even more than I have been in the past. So for me this made sense. I'm the executive director of a big youth organization. My kids are immersed into sports, and now here's an opportunity for me to further myself into this community by being a part of this incredible training facility, and I am looking forward to it.

Speaker 1: 4:58

So sometimes, as parents, it's about sacrifice. Sometimes, as parents, it's about helping them, our kids, make the right decision instead of maybe the one that they want, because those two things don't always align. But as parents, you get to be that overseer, and it's important I don't want to end on this. It's important to be honest, though, also about your, your child. So because your child, maybe he might like a sport, but maybe he has not developed yet. Or maybe your child loves, or rather, maybe your child is as good as a sport, but they haven't developed the passion yet. So in this case, we don't want to force, but we do want to come alongside them to be supportive.

Speaker 1: 5:40

I think that once we have that conversation and once we are very self-aware and help our children to be self-aware, we can then help create an environment for them that nurtures success in that particular arena, and I want this sort of opportunity that I just took advantage of and I get to be a part of. I wanted to inspire everyone to simply just reflect a little bit and answer a couple questions One what can I do to help my child achieve the dreams and goals that they have? Number two, maybe what type of conversation can I have with my young athlete that'll help them to understand a little bit more the discipline and work that it might take in order to get to that next step? And three, maybe it's a question for yourself Is this something that's good for my family? If you can answer all those questions, it helps now you to direct a path accordingly and pick that path and go all in with it. Because here's a truth and I share this with a lot of parents that I get to talk to one-on-one but here's a truth Age will determine when your child stops playing.

Speaker 1: 6:59

That's just a fact. We all can't play the sport that we love forever. There are certain variables that come into play that make the decision for us. That could be age, that could be skill, that could be the community. Right, there are things that, at play, that'll make the decision for them. Until that time comes, that at play that'll make the decision for them. Until that time comes, go all in. Give your child every opportunity that you possibly can that's within your means, so that your child has the best chance of success. So for me, I bought a training facility. For you that's going to look completely different, but the one thing that we have in common are our kids, and we want what's best for them. Thanks so much for tuning into this week's episode of Raising Athletes. I'm looking forward to growing this community together. Take care.