CHARLOTTESVILLE (CVILLE RIGHT NOW) — For the past two-and-a-half years, Daniel Sivinski has worked as the Squash and Fitness Specialist at the Boy & Girls Clubs of Central Virginia (BGCCVA). This year, he was recognized earlier this month as 2025 Professional of the Year by the organization’s Virginia/Washington D.C. Area Council.

Previously, Sivinski had spent five years at a Youth Development Specialist (YDP), but once the opening for his current job opened up, he got curious.

“It seemed like it would be a pretty awesome opportunity for me to get back into coaching,” he said, “which I was kind of itching to do.”

Sivinski had first gotten into coaching when he became his high school’s wrestling coach at just 19. There he “caught the bug” and has been working with kids and doing athletics ever since.

He called coaching “a nice medium to teach kids all these other life tools,” as they come up more organically in sports.

But there was one catch with the job opening — Sivinski had never played squash before. The sport, which is similar to racquetball but with a bigger ball and no ceiling, was foreign to Sivinski. 

So, he did his research, and as he learned about the sport and mastered the fundamentals, he realized that not only was it fun to play, but that he’d be able to incorporate what he had already learned as a YDP into his coaching.

“So, like mental health tools, how to teach kids how to deescalate, peer education as opposed to the adult being there a whole bunch, and then also all the stuff I know from coaching,” he said. “So, it all just kind of blended together perfectly.”

Since then, Sivinski has found joy in connecting with the kids and watching them grow. He shared one story of a child he worked with first as a YDP who struggled with anger to the point he was throwing tables and chairs and running out of the room. 

Now, thanks to what he’s learned playing squash with Sivinski, his coach says he shows other kids struggling with their anger strategies he’s learned to cope with his own emotions.

“That stuff is just peppered throughout the day,” Sivinski said, “and it just really warms my heart.”

How did Sivinski learn of his award?

In the middle of a practice session, everyone came down to the court, applauding.

“Immediately I’m like, ‘What’s going on?’” he said, “and all the kids are in the same boat, so I had to get really excited real fast.”

He said he was “blown away” to have received the award, and called his parents, siblings and friends to deliver the good news.

Sivinski has made a strong impact on the organization locally, with BGCCVA CEO Kate Lambert writing in the press release announcing the award, “He has done a tremendous job developing a culture of squash at the Club by encouraging members to learn a new and challenging sport and engaging the broader community in the program.”

The feeling between the instructor and the club leadership was mutual, as Sivinski praised them for helping him develop the squash program, especially the Albemarle Campus Club’s Unit Director Nick Huggins, Lead Program Coordinator Bridget Mitchell and Teen Program Coordinator Thomas Brown.

“It’s just really awesome to see that anytime I had an idea, or we need to pivot because of whatever’s going on in the club, everyone’s always on board and they’re just like, ‘Yeah, that sounds great. What do you need?’” Sivinski said, “and it’s made the progress happen a lot faster.”