Big Swim Big Kick® was back in 2022 after a two-year hiatus – and bigger than ever! Asphalt Green hosted our signature annual event at our Upper East Side campus, and, for the first time, the events took place over two days. Big Kick kicked off on April 29 and Big Swim went swimmingly on April 30. Hundreds of kids ages 6 to 11 played soccer-themed games on our athletic field and experienced the thrill of racing in an Olympic-size pool for a 25-yard swim meet.

Big Kick saw kids stream onto Litwin Field for an evening of soccer festival fun. Children tested their skills with soccer darts, soccer pool, soccer tennis, one-on-one games, and more. The evening culminated with the Dynamic Freestyle Soccer Crew putting on an exhibition of their amazing juggling skills.

New York City Council Member Julie Menin opened the races at Big Swim. Kids jumped into the pool and swam to the finish in the 25-yard race. Some of the athletes who took part in the race learned to swim through our free Waterproofing program. It was a true celebration of sports and fitness, and each child went home with a swim cap and a medal, and they all got an ice pop to enjoy after their race.

Big Swim Big Kick® was held in honor of Asphalt Green’s coaches this year. Excellence in coaching is at the core of Asphalt Green’s success as a nonprofit organization. The expertise, commitment, and passion that our coaches bring to Asphalt Green make a profound impact on the lives of tens of thousands of children and adults annually.

This year’s events included Big Benefit, a gala dinner held on Wednesday, April 27. Guests attending the benefit mingled with honorees Adam Perez, director of soccer and player development for Asphalt Green Soccer Club, and David Rodriguez, senior director of aquatics and head coach of Asphalt Green Unified Aquatics.  Altogether, Big Swim Big Kick® and Big Benefit raised over $1 million to support the development of our coaching staff, our free community programs, and our scholarships. 

A huge thank you to the hundreds of volunteers and the generous sponsors who made the events possible: 

Platinum Sponsors 

  • Gray Foundation 
  • Wendy and Ian Sacks 
  • Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen and Katz 
  • Barrie and Albert Zesiger 

Gold Sponsors 

  • Bloomberg Philanthropies 
  • Christa A. D’Alimonte and Flint Hobart 
  • Glenn Dubin 
  • Caroline Hribar and Mallon FitzPatrick 
  • Darcy and Andy Nussbaum 
  • Cynthia Oh and Kyoo-Cheol Chris Rhee 
  • Slowik Family 
  • Locky and Scott Trachsel 

Silver Sponsors 

  • Ascent Real Estate Advisors, LLC 
  • Cerberus Capital Management, L.P. 
  • Kirsten J. Feldman 
  • Susan and Edward Kopelowitz 
  • Packles Family 

Bronze Sponsors 

  • Birch/Colvin/Krahe/ Silverman Families 
  • Frank Chan 
  • Mimi and Andrew Crawford 
  • Antoinette and Trevor Freeman 
  • Mark and Elizabeth Gormley 
  • Kings Point Capital Management LLC 
  • Wan Li and Bruce MacLennan 
  • Amanda and Thomas Lister 
  • Metro Team Sports 
  • Jennifer Bayer Michaels 
  • The Newman Schreiber Family 
  • Narvie and Travis Rundlet 
  • Safety Facility Services, Inc. 
  • Patricia and Paul Saunders 
  • Albert Wu 
  • Joanne Wuensch and Paul Sherrington 
  • And nine (9) anonymous sponsors