By Patricia Neligan
Originally printed on April 15, 2025, in the Lakewood Observer.
Mr. Cesar Vargas, a twenty-five-year resident of Lakewood, has been the art teacher at Harding Middle School for eight years. He and his wife raised three boys here and have taught art for nearly 20 years. My son, Emmet Barley, was fortunate to be introduced to the game of handball by Mr. Vargas four years ago, when he was in sixth grade, and Mr. Vargas started a handball club.
“I was introduced to handball in high school and was immediately hooked. Whenever I found the chance to play, I would, as much as I could. Fast forward to four years ago: I introduced the game to our middle school students, and, like me, they were hooked,” said Vargas. Between Lakewood High School and Harding, there are about 30 players with hopes of continuing and expanding.
“These kids wait patiently for me to come down to play during lunch and recess. Many of them show up on their own weekends to use the mediocre court we have in our back parking lot at Harding. It’s really cool to see as I drive past on an unrelated errand and catch them out there getting it in.”
Handball, a game that originated in Ireland, was introduced to the U.S. by Irish immigrants in the 1800s. New York City is now the mecca of handball. August 2024, the World Handball Championship was held in Limerick, Ireland. The U.S. won the men’s competition, and Ireland won the women’s championship.
Handball is a popular sport in Ireland and is an official sport of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). The GAA is an international amateur sporting and cultural organization focused primarily on promoting indigenous Gaelic games and pastimes, including the traditional Irish sports of hurling, camogie, Gaelic football, Gaelic handball, and GAA rounders.
February 2025, junior players from New York City and Belfast, Ireland, ages 14-18, faced off in a tournament in the Bronx. Each team had eight boys and four girls. I brought my son Emmet to spectate, and he was asked to play against a Belfast player.
Emmet led the entirety of the game but fell short by just one point at the end. It was an excellent way for Emmet to gauge the competition and his standing as a handball player. He is now a rising sophomore at Lakewood HS and was a starter for our lacrosse team this past spring. His coaches credit some of his success as a player to his years in various sports, including the hand-eye coordination developed in handball.
Emmet led the entirety of the game but fell short by just one point at the end. It was an excellent way for Emmet to gauge the competition and his standing as a handball player. He is now a rising sophomore at Lakewood HS and was a starter for our lacrosse team this past spring. His coaches credit some of his success as a player to his years in various sports, including the hand-eye coordination developed in handball.
Mr. Vargas is deeply committed to helping these kids continue their passion for handball beyond middle school. He recognizes the current limitations, with Harding being the only place to play in Lakewood if the gym isn’t booked for other activities.
This situation is not conducive for students at LHS, and the prospect of handball dying out for them due to the lack of a dedicated playing space is disheartening. Mr. Vargas firmly believes we can do better and is advocating for a dedicated handball court in the city to ensure the sport continues to thrive at the high school level and to the community at large.
Ideally, Vargas would like LHS to designate a space for a handball court and possibly even set one up at one or two of our parks, which Vargas said he guarantees will be used. We have reached out to the high school’s girls’ and boys’ tennis coaches, and both are on board with helping find a space for these kids to play and possibly take an interest in playing for the high school tennis team.
We met with Mr. Mark Walter, the Director of Community and District Activities, in the spring of 2025 to pitch our idea, in hopes of garnering some interest. This past spring, 32 of our student players in grades 6 through 11, along with their parents, spoke at a Lakewood City Council meeting in support of handball in Lakewood. The council members were impressed with the turnout and listened to the students’ request for courts in Lakewood.
They are trying to figure out the best solution to make this a reality. Vargas is again meeting with Council Member Tom Bullock this summer at Harding. Bullock wants to check out our space and learn more about the game.
Mr. Vargas has submitted measurements and ideas to make this possible on one of the high school courts. “Our students were able to play in a tournament in the summer of 2024 in Cleveland and in Toledo, where several top players, who our students are familiar with in the world, took some time to give our students a pretty cool handball clinic and something they will remember.” Mr. Vargas led the charge in getting students to attend this event.
Emmet had a great time and came home with all kinds of handball swag. The players and event coordinators are passionate about this sport and want to encourage these kids to keep playing.
World Handball Championships
The world handball/wallball championships will be held in New York City this September at four venues: Central Park, Queens, and two in Brooklyn. Vargas excitedly shared that he is signed up to compete in the 50+ slot. “Fingers crossed that I make it back in one piece.”
Vargas plans to continue introducing and helping to develop this great sport to his middle school students for as long as possible.” I genuinely believe we are onto something good and can surely use help to grow it further.” He is pursuing a coaching certification from the United States Handball Association (USHA) and has received support from the Cleveland Handball Association.
Benefits of Handball
- Mental wellness and social; gets kids off screens and outdoors
- It’s a full-body workout: cardiovascular, agility
- Hand-eye coordination
- Lifelong sport, not demanding on your body
- Low-cost, everyone is welcome
If you are interested in helping us grow this sport in Lakewood, please reach out to column author Patricia Neligan patricia@neliganglobaltravel.com or Cesar Vargas 216-392-2547 cesar.vargas@lakewoodcityschools.org
