Interest in a 270 Corridor youth Lacrosse Program

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Montgomery Village seems like they will give us exclusive field rights to South Valley Park which is essentially unused now that MV Chiefs has folded. It's a full size field with well maintained Bermuda grass and access to concessions and bathrooms.

Make sure you always have right of first refusal. Make sure you lock in as many years as possible to maintain a relatively fixed cost related to fields. Laytonia should be the target. Work within the montgomery system to try and lock down those fields. This will allow you to run a full year program when Moco shuts down the fields for their rest period. Don't worry about the cost. Build out from that cost basis. If you can't get a turf field(s), you won't be successful.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montgomery Village seems like they will give us exclusive field rights to South Valley Park which is essentially unused now that MV Chiefs has folded. It's a full size field with well maintained Bermuda grass and access to concessions and bathrooms.

Make sure you always have right of first refusal. Make sure you lock in as many years as possible to maintain a relatively fixed cost related to fields. Laytonia should be the target. Work within the montgomery system to try and lock down those fields. This will allow you to run a full year program when Moco shuts down the fields for their rest period. Don't worry about the cost. Build out from that cost basis. If you can't get a turf field(s), you won't be successful.

I agree that I need to get on turf. I also have meetings set up with Gaithersburg about use of turf fields at Lakelands Park and Kelly Park.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Montgomery Village seems like they will give us exclusive field rights to South Valley Park which is essentially unused now that MV Chiefs has folded. It's a full size field with well maintained Bermuda grass and access to concessions and bathrooms.

Make sure you always have right of first refusal. Make sure you lock in as many years as possible to maintain a relatively fixed cost related to fields. Laytonia should be the target. Work within the montgomery system to try and lock down those fields. This will allow you to run a full year program when Moco shuts down the fields for their rest period. Don't worry about the cost. Build out from that cost basis. If you can't get a turf field(s), you won't be successful.

I agree on not worrying about the cost. I am however funding all of this out of my own pocket so I am worrying a little about the cost. I am putting between 5-10k of my own money into this. Wish i could do more but teacher salaries for new teachers in MCPS are what they are.

[Anonymous]

Clinics, camps, clinics, camps. Don’t rush to teams right away. Make them fun with lots of game play. Model it after first class, apex and the other higher end showcases. Lots of instructors, lots of touches.

You don’t need to automatically be a non profit. The structure is very limiting and holds little sway in decision making. NL, ML, CB, DCE aren’t non profit. If the business matures, you can add that element.

Fields, fields, fields.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Clinics, camps, clinics, camps. Don’t rush to teams right away. Make them fun with lots of game play. Model it after first class, apex and the other higher end showcases. Lots of instructors, lots of touches.

You don’t need to automatically be a non profit. The structure is very limiting and holds little sway in decision making. NL, ML, CB, DCE aren’t non profit. If the business matures, you can add that element.

Fields, fields, fields.

Yeah. The plan so far is 1 or 2 2 week long Summer camps and if enough kids show interest, a small 4 team "rec" program in the fall and just build from there. I'm hoping to be able to provide all gear for at least the camps so there is a very low barrier to entry. I already have contacts and connections with all the major companies about wholesale accounts so I should be able to get a good amount of complete gear sets for my investment.

[Anonymous]

Keep this forum informed on the progress

[Anonymous]

put up a website link when you can!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:put up a website link when you can!

I'm currently working on some admin type stuff like trademarks and non-profit status. That should hopefully be done before the end of April and then I can move on to things like websites and branding

[Anonymous]

Don't do it. There is zero reason to form a non-profit in your current situation.

You can't easily "own" or cash out: No equity, no selling the business for personal gain. Assets stay with the mission if you dissolve it.
Heavy oversight and restrictions: Strict rules on private benefit (no inurement to you or insiders), political activity limits, and "reasonable compensation." Excessive salary or perks can jeopardize tax-exempt status.
Administrative burden: Ongoing compliance (Form 990 filings, board meetings, conflict-of-interest policies, record-keeping) is more complex and expensive than a solo LLC or sole prop. Many small nonprofits struggle with this.
Board requirement: Even if you start solo, you need independent board members for governance. Running it truly alone risks "founder's syndrome" issues or IRS pushback. Good board members are hard to recruit and keep if they feel like rubber stamps.
Funding reality: Grants sound great, but they're competitive, often restricted, and don't replace earned revenue. If your "business" relies on selling products/services for profit, a nonprofit model may limit scalability and innovation.
Cost and time: Filing fees, legal help for articles/bylaws, IRS Form 1023 (or 1023-EZ), and state requirements add up. Many solo founders regret the hassle if they're not truly mission-driven with donation/grant potential.