How it
all started

Having come from a large family of 16 children, where money was scarce, founder and president, George Smith knows all too well the effects of growing up with the constant fear of not having enough. His passion of helping children in need comes from the place of knowing - of understanding the experience of these children.

Despite the hardships of his childhood, George became inspired by the families who were there for him throughout the financial hardships his youth; Long Islanders whose generosity lifted him up and showed him that people do care and want to help. It made all the difference to a young George when he would receive dinner invitations from neighborhood families with enough to give and the willingness to share, or people reaching out, befriending him, and taking him under their wing - giving him a job and the opportunity to learn the value of hard work and earning a living.

When George got older, he met a wonderful woman named Patricia. The two fell in love and were married in September of 1966 and after they moved together from Brooklyn to Selden. There, Pat became a deacon at a little church down the street called Grace Presbyterian. At this time, the church was having problems with kids breaking into the church where they would deface, defile, or steal from the church. Pat expressed her upset to George and this got his wheels turning. It was clear that these kids needed a positive influence in their lives, and he had an idea of how he might be able to help. First, he needed to know who owned the land behind the church.

George me with the Pastor and discovered the church owned the land; FOUR ACRES to be exact. He then made a request to the church and session - to lease him the property for $1, and he would not only clear the land, but also build two baseball fields for the children in the community - and the church agreed

Excited at the prospect of helping to move the youth in the community in a positive direction, George got moving on this new project. At this time, George was a freelance contractor, but also owned DeePat Auto Body in Selden. This came in handy because not only was he a motivated possibility-thinker with business savvy and the understanding of how to begin a project of this caliber, but he was also a man of the community. He was lucky enough to know sponsors and donors as well as neighbors, and family members who were able to help him to get this project off the ground. And, a year later, in 1977, the Centereach-Selden Little League was born.

The mission of the Centereach-Selden Little League was clear: to reach every child who wanted to play ball. Because of this, the cost for the team uniform and equipment was only $5 - For those who couldn’t afford even the $5, the children played for free. Their desire was to leave no child behind and to give all children the same opportunity.

Years passed by, George and Pat eventually moved out of Selden. While back in the neighborhood visiting his daughter, George had noticed the property behind the church was being built up again. For many years, it had gone unused and was left unkempt, since the league had moved to a different location. As he walked over to see what was going on he saw a man in the parking lot who turned out to be the Deputy Commissioner of the Brookhaven Department of Parks, Recreation and Sports. George asked him who was involved in making this happen, and was told it was the Brookhaven Councilman, Kevin LaValle’s project. George knew he had to meet with the man who had brought this property back to life, as George himself had done in years past.

George and Kevin met, and as they traded old stories, Kevin revealed that he had played ball on those fields when he was a child. It had been Kevin’s dream to redo the old fields, and one day build two more, along with a full complex. After talking with Kevin and seeing the tremendous impact the league had made on him as a child, George's passion was reignited for the organization he started in 2011 for underprivileged children, called Youth Economic Support aka Y.E.S.

What we do

Our L.I.- Y.E.S. organization offers a variety of programs to help support our fellow Long Islanders in need.

Some programs we offer include:

We are continuously moving forward and expanding to better serve our communities.

Baseball
Softball
Soccer,
Pickleball
Basketball

Academic Assistance:

Sports Programs:

Computer training
Test prep
Homework assistance
ESL
Tutoring

CEO and President

George Smith

With hard work, dedication, and understanding, George has created numerous opportunities for children from financially disadvantaged families and helped positively change the focus of the youth in the community.

Today, George continues to support startups for children in the community and beyond through the efforts of his Y.E.S. organization.

Executive VP

Alan Holtz

Alan Holtz, born and raised in Selden, New York on Long Island where he spent his youth playing in the Selden Little League. From the start, Alan was a key member in helping create the Centereach Little League. Today, he is an active member in his community as well as the church - still giving back to his community.

Executive Director Sports and Rec

Lisa Shindler

Lisa began playing Pickle Ball in the spring of 2015 through Adult Ed classes and started recreational play at Centereach Park where she went from beginner, to advanced player in ONE summer.

For the past 5 years, Lisa has been teaching Pickle Ball for adults and it has given her the greatest joy to see her students advance and grow as players.

Director of Public Relations

Cynthia Buckley

Cynthia, one of George's three daughters, is the LI-YES Director of Public Relations. Despite being an incredibly successful beauty business owner, Cynthia still makes time to give back to her community.

VP of Sales and Marketing

Ed Farro

Board member, Ed Farro, is a man of many talents. As an auto-parts salesman, store owner, and realty broker, he still finds time to support his community.

Ed played a major role in the establishment of the Selden Little League.

East End Director

Rik Kristiansson

Rik was born in New York City and spent his youth between the city and Connecticut. In 2000, after spending 20+ years on Wall St, Rik moved to Long Island where he's become involved in the local Hamptons real estate business.

When not working, Rik is an avid pickleball player and golfer as well as member of The Water Mill Citizens Advisory Committee, The Nature Conservancy and Long Island Clean Water Partnership. He, his wife Adele and two cats Wolf and Blue reside Water Mill.

Youth Program Director

Kelly Dabe

Kelly is a NY state licensed speech pathologist and courageous mother of 3. As one of our youth program facilitators/directors, Kelly offers so much love & compassion throughout all of her endeavors - her unwavering heart for children & contribution makes her one of a kind.