Under Their Wings, Men's Lacrosse Creates Life-Changing Bonds Through Team IMPACT

Written by Kaileigh Grieb '25 (communication major)
- ECGulls.com Contributor from Ken Davidoff's Sports Journalism Class
(Davidoff covered Major League Baseball for 25 years for Newsday and the New York Post)

BEVERLY, Mass. — Endicott College takes pride in operating with purpose.

On and off the field, Endicott's sports teams take pride in what they can do to benefit their community and are always seeking out ways to do good.

A team that takes immense pride in giving back to the community would be the Endicott men's lacrosse team, who goes above and beyond in regard to community involvement.

That being their involvement with the program called Team IMPACT.

Team IMPACT is a national sports program that matches children facing serious illnesses and disabilities with college sports teams. They take pride in creating a long-term, life-changing experience for everyone involved.

Their mission statement is:

"We provide outcomes that change lives. Team IMPACT provides a safe, supportive, and encouraging environment for a child and their family to connect with a college athletic team and local campus community."

Endicott's men's lacrosse team has partnered with Team IMPACT for 11 years now and like the baseball, football, men's basketball, softball, women's lacrosse, men's soccer, men's golf, women's hockey, and volleyball teams, the program has seen 16 kids signed to these programs across the board.

Team IMPACT players are paired with the team based on their hometown and sport preferences. These teams usually assess how the player would fit in with the dynamic of the team and what their needs are before recruiting the player.

Once these players are paired with their teams, they go about their signing day.

Their signing day is seen as a very unique and exciting experience for all who get to witness it. Each player is able to sign their commitment in front of the whole team, their family, and sometimes even other Team IMPACT mentors from other sports.

But, what makes the Endicott men's lacrosse team stand out?

The Endicott men's lacrosse team is one of, if not, the only team in the country that has welcomed not just one but two Team IMPACT players to their roster, Ken Wallace and Patrick Bell.

Ken Wallace has been with the team since the 2015 season.

Unfortunately, Ken suffered a stroke when he was young, but this did not define him.

He has become extremely experienced with interacting with the team and is seen as a leader among other Team IMPACT players.

He even serves as a mentor to their other Team IMPACT player, Patrick Bell.

Patrick Bell is seventeen years old with Down Syndrome and is described as "extremely creative, energetic and loves to make people laugh and smile".

Because of his extreme love of sports, especially lacrosse and hockey, he joined the Endicott men's lacrosse team last season and has overall brought up the morale of the team.

Patrick even has a public Instagram account (@pattybecmlax) that allows fans of the Endicott men's lacrosse team to follow along with both his and Ken's adventures with the team.

Ranging from pictures of workouts with the team to updates about the pair's life, it's another way for the team to better connect with each other.

Junior faceoff/midfielder, Zach Hojnowski (Somers, Conn.), is one of the many outstanding players whose taken on the role of mentoring both Ken and Patrick. 

His enthusiasm and excitement for talking about his teammates were infectious when asked about his time working with both Ken and Patrick.

"Team IMPACT players are welcomed to team activities with great enthusiasm like any other teammate [in the program]. Everyone is usually extremely glad to spend time with our Team IMPACT players and is always ready to participate and provide help. They are incorporated into a great amount of our team activities including meetings, practices, and fun activities off the field," stated Hojnowski.

When asked to reflect on his time working with Team IMPACT, Hojnowski had much positivity to share.

"Team IMPACT has become an extremely important part of my life and it has allowed me to make new friends and have new experiences. I am extremely grateful to have the opportunity to help people. It is also a big deal for the team and is one of our favorite ways to give back. The team values our Team IMPACT players and they have become a part of our team's culture." 

With working with such a life-changing program, it's a given that all who choose to step up and get involved leave with learning lessons that will follow them for the rest of their lives.

Hojnowski can agree with that statement.

"I have definitely been able to learn a lot through my experience with the Team IMPACT organization. It has been extremely helpful with becoming more understanding. To be spending time with someone different than you has been a good experience and has allowed me to better understand how to help others in ways that you may not always think about."

Ken and Patrick's journey with the team is still well underway. There is so much more to come from these two boys and on behalf of the men's lacrosse team, there's so much more for them to learn from them.

A real Gull knows when to take others under their wings and they understand that a person is truly only as great as they treat others. The Endicott men's lacrosse team knows this and they soar above and beyond to create experiences that will last a lifetime for not only Ken and Patrick, but for each other as well. 

For the latest on Endicott Athletics, follow the Gulls on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

(Photo Credit - David Le '10)