Meet David Higbee | Nonprofit Leader & Lacrosse Coach

We had the good fortune of connecting with David Higbee and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi David, what do you attribute your success to?
Running a nonprofit requires, of course, completing many tasks and duties, from operations, and fundraising to overseeing programs. For Bridge Lacrosse, when I took the role of Executive Director, many of those duties were laid out very explicitly. It made the transition into the position much easier, having a defined to-do list and understanding of how to keep the organization upright. These tasks almost all came with very specific and objective benchmarks and metrics. However, one task was not as obvious or clear in how to accomplish, and that was maintaining and growing the culture of Bridge. As a younger organization, we hadn’t quite found our footing in what made Bridge Lacrosse who we are today.

Over time, we began to identify and learn about the people in Bridge, what made their commitment to us unique. I knew that building a culture that people gravitated to would take time, and so we let relationships develop organically while being intentional about the values that were important to us. Without a doubt the successes of Bridge Lacrosse stem from a wide network of genuine relationships by invested members of our organization. This network of people, including student-athletes, volunteers, parents, donors, alumni, school partners and more, make up what we call the Bridge Family, and it is the central piece of our culture, today. The culture we have built from this network has been the key to our growth and retention for the last six years. The members of Bridge all feel a special commitment to our work and have found great value in being a part of the mission.

I’m incredibly proud of the work over the last six years to have built a culture that is heavily invested in by so many people, all from the widest range of backgrounds. Each person has a unique and special relationship with Bridge and other members within, and for many it is a relationship unlike any other in their lives.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Bridge Lacrosse is a sports-based youth development nonprofit serving the often under-resourced communities of North Texas. We believe that sports can be a powerful positive influence for kids and provide opportunities that may not exist in the neighborhoods we serve. Our mission is to use the sport of lacrosse to broaden horizons. For us, lacrosse is an amazing tool and vehicle for growth and opportunity, and with well over a decade, we have incredible stories and evidence of our work and accomplishments.

Some of my favorite stories to share are about our growing alumni base. It’s an honor to be able to see many of the kids I once coached, years ago, return to Bridge and support us in a number of ways. We often tell our coaches that you may never see the impact or influence you had on a player, but with more than a decade of programs, we are beginning to see just how impactful our work was on developing our student-athletes. Today, we have alumni serving as coaches and volunteers, making financial contributions and we recently added an alum to our board of directors.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Dallas is a great city to visit, with a little something for everyone. Any visit to Dallas by a friend of mine must be centered around coffee and food, and a few spots to take our dogs for a long walk. First stop would be my own neighborhood of downtown and stop for coffee at Weekend Coffee in the Joule Hotel. It’s an almost daily stop and routine at this point. After, we head to Bishop Arts, coffee at Hola (a little outside of Bishop Arts) or Oddfellows, wandering around the street in one of the few truly walkable neighborhoods of Dallas, with food stops at El Si Hay for tacos, Lockhart Smokehouse, Eno’s and Emporium Pies. Some of the best places to see a little nature include Goat Island, Eco Trail and Trammell Crow Park. For my dogs, it’s their favorite to run around and play. Deep Ellum is also a must visit neighborhood with shoutouts to Cane Rosso for pizza, coffee at Mokah or Murray Street, and for the greatest brisket nachos, we head to Pecan Lodge. Lastly, another great few places to visit with dogs include White Rock Lake, Cedar Hill State Park and a hidden gem in Windmill Hill Preserve.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My involvement and love for Bridge Lacrosse started with one woman, our founder, Edie Lycke. She deserves all of the credit for my journey within Bridge. For years, I was able to watch her at the helm of Bridge, before I took over as the Executive Director, and see an incredibly tenacious and compassionate person. She loved the kids in Bridge and she worked tirelessly to make sure that they were taken care of both on and off the field. I first met Edie at a volunteer party at her home, shortly after I had moved to Dallas. Her energy for Bridge and enthusiasm for building something special was infectious, and at the time, Bridge was just getting started as an organization. Even today, more than a decade later, Edie remains engaged in our work and a mentor and guide to myself.

Website: https://bridgelacrosse.org/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidhigbee/

Image Credits
Image credit to Drew Merlino and Jack Vroom