Dads Club of Pleasantville: Where the Sports are for Kids

“I’m booooooooooooooored!”

It’s the universal rallying cry of school-aged kids and we’ve all heard it a thousand times. What’s a parent to do?

If you’re a Pleasantville parent, you have some wonderful options. One of the best is to register your child to participate in one or more sports with the Dads Club of Pleasantville, a nonprofit, all-volunteer organization whose goal is simple: to give all Pleasantville kids in kindergarten through eighth grade the opportunity to play sports in a safe environment supervised by responsible adults—and at a price their parents can afford (approximately $75 to $160 per sport, depending on the sport and whether uniforms and equipment are required or included, plus discounts for a second child).

“Dads Club was formed in 1958 by a group of fathers who were looking to organize some sports for local kids,” said Club President and lifelong Pleasantville resident Nick Salzarulo, who has children in both and . “And that’s what the organization is still about—the kids. Nobody gets paid. The organization is one hundred percent volunteers, from the board of directors to the commissioners to the coaches.”

The 501c3 organization “offers every child the opportunity to participate in our programs regardless of ability level,” says Dads Club Vice President Dan McPhee, a Pleasantville dad with four sons.

“Where we compete with other communities in football, lacrosse, travel baseball and travel basketball, our objective is to ensure every player has the chance to play at the competitively appropriate level,” explained McPhee, which gives every child the chance to experience some success.

Dads Club offers a number of sports throughout the year, including football, baseball, basketball, field hockey, volleyball, lacrosse—even wrestling. Sports are played at various locations, including fields and parks in Pleasantville, such as and .

Though parents with younger children, or those who are new to the community, may assume Dads Club is an organization for fathers and sons, that is not the case. Despite the organization’s name, Dads Club volunteers are not limited to fathers, and sports are open to both boys and girls.

“Dads Club as a name is essentially the brand,” explained McPhee. “We have dozens of moms who give of their time to support our children.”

Pleasantville resident Lisa Gagliardi, who has two daughters and has lived in the community for 22 years, is one of those moms. Nine years ago, she started the Dads Club cheerleading program, and serves as its commissioner.

“The organization has had girls’ sports for many years,” said Gagliardi, noting the moniker, though perhaps a bit of a misnomer, has likely not changed “because of the name recognition.”

McPhee added Dads Club welcomes all volunteers–older sisters, brothers, uncles, aunts and grandparents, too!

Girls’ sports offered by the Dads Club include lacrosse, field hockey, volleyball, softball, cheerleading and basketball. All of the sports, whether for boys or girls, Gagliardi said, teach not only skills and technique, but are big on “teamwork and good sportsmanship.”

And though Dads Club is not affiliated with the , it is, according to Gagliardi, “a feeder program for the middle school and the high school.”

Spring registration, which is normally closed early in March, has been extended until March 25.

“We were still getting phone calls [from interested parents],” said Salzarulo, “and we try to accommodate people."

On average, added McPhee, “more than six hundred children will participate in our many sports.”

According to Salzarulo, among the hundreds of spring sign-ups so far, there are 244 sign-ups for boys’ baseball, 204 for girls’ and boys’ lacrosse and 53 sign-ups for girls’ softball.

Parents who wish to register their children for a Dads Club sport or who would like to volunteer should visit www.pleasantvilledadsclub.com and contact the appropriate sports commissioner, or contact Nick Salzarulo directly at (914) 774-3267 or nicksalzarulo@yahoo.coom.