Doug Rifenburg wants to do more than just fill a physical need; he wants to change the culture of the Western New York sports community.
And while his organization, Victory Sports, will begin with supplying underprivileged sports teams and athletes with the equipment they need, Rifenburg expects that there will be a ripple effect that goes beyond just sports. And he’s prepared for the extra opportunities that ripple effect may present him.
Rifenburg has an extensive sports background himself. His father, Dick Rifenburg, was an All-American tight end at the University of Michigan, played for the Detroit Lions for one season in 1950, and then settled in Buffalo, where he worked as a sports broadcaster for 30 years, doing color commentary and play-by-play for the Buffalo Bills.
Doug Rifenburg followed in his father’s footsteps and played football at Clarence High School and at the University at Buffalo. He also played basketball and ran track in high school, and, after college, competed in weekend warrior sports events.
He grew up surrounded by a sports culture thanks to his father and never strayed from it, but more important than sports, for Doug Rifenburg, is his faith. About eight years ago, he began to find ways to “intersect faith with sports” at Eastern Hills Wesleyan Church through hockey.
“We started the floor hockey/street hockey program,” Rifenburg explained. “I started intersecting my faith with sports and really got more into sports ministry and working more with kids as a coach.”
The idea for Victory Sports began to form about four years ago and stemmed from Rifenburg’s love for sports, God, and helping kids. The original concept was a bit different than the current product, but ultimately, Rifenburg just wanted to find a way to delve into sports ministry full-time.
“I loved the idea of a ‘play it again’ kind of a store,” Rifenburg explained. “You could open up a store and you could collect used sports gear and you could sell it, and that could help support the ministry, but then you could also donate equipment to needy organizations and under-resourced schools and programs. The idea has morphed a lot since then, but that was the original concept, and I’ve been just kind of waiting for God’s timing to put everything into place.”
Rifenburg’s patience and faith has paid off, as his dream has finally come to fruition over the past year. He’s found the right people and the right components, as well as some slight redirection, to make Victory Sports a reality.
“Over the last year, God has really put people into my path and into my life that have kind of become little stepping stones to get to the next level,” Rifenburg said. “One gentleman helped me realign how I wanted to do the ministry. And rather than doing a store where I’d be selling equipment, I’m really just gonna create a warehouse, where I collect used and new sports equipment, I warehouse it, and then schools and teams that are in need of gear and can’t afford to buy it apply for an equipment grant. Then they can come and shop at my warehouse for the stuff that they need at no charge or very little cost to them. The idea is just to help kids, especially inner-city kids, whose families can’t afford to buy the equipment that they need.”
Rifenburg has reviewed research on the effects of school sports and found that a kid who is involved in school sports is more likely to attend school, get higher grades, and have healthier eating and drinking habits.
“All the research shows the benefits of being involved in a school sport, so hopefully this will help get some of those kids that can’t do it because of the cost barriers — it’ll help them get into a sports team,” Rifenburg said. “The goal is really just to help increase sports participation in schools, which then in turn just improves the quality of the schools. More kids will want to go to school, it’ll improve the school culture, and it’ll get kids off the street. If a kid is not showing up to school at all, then he’s usually up to no good during the day. If he’s part of a team, he has to be in school and then go to practice. The idea is just to get kids off the street and give them a healthier place for them to be.” 
Once Victory Sports has supplied teams and individuals with the equipment they need, Rifenburg hopes to take it a step further with character building programs for both athletes and coaches. He hopes to have a positive influence on the culture of high school sports.
“I’m not only going to a team and just helping them get some soccer balls, but maybe I can help work with the coach and the team and teach them some life lessons and teach them about character and leadership, so that they’re not just an athlete, but they can become better citizens and better sons and daughters and students,” Rifenburg explained. “That to me is almost the more important part of the whole thing. The equipment is a way to get your foot in the door and start the relationships, and then the character-building and the leadership development part is really where I think you’ll see the greatest impact and change being made, especially with coaches. I’m going to create a coaching academy where I just work with coaches, especially young coaches who’ve never coached before, and really help establish the foundation of what a good coach looks like and how they talk to and treat kids and parents. I think if we can create a better culture of coaching, it’ll create a better culture of athletes, and through that we can really change the community.”
ABOUT VICTORY SPORTS
Already, Victory Sports has been able to help supply individuals and missionaries with sporting equipment, including sending basketballs and volleyballs and baseball equipment to missionaries in the Dominican Republic.
The organization is in the process of officially becoming a 501c3 not-for-profit organization. The organization will rely on grants, foundation money, personal donations and support, and some merchandise sales to offset costs.
More information, including where to donate your gently used sports equipment and what kind of equipment is needed, can be found at victorysports.org.
VICTORY SPORTS AND ITF
Icing The Fed and Victory Sports will partner together to present a Character Athlete of the Week award during the 2017-18 Fed hockey season to deserving individuals.