Major League Lacrosse has just released a powerful video featuring New York Lizards defenseman Mark Ellis, chronicling his upbringing on Long Island.

Ellis, who grew up on the border of Garden City and Hempstead, used lacrosse as a means of staying on the right path. The video opens with an anecdote about Ellis’ brother, who is incarcerated.

Mark Ellis: On The Line@mtellis34 | @lizardslacrosse pic.twitter.com/o3y47KTKBq

— Major League Lacrosse (@MLL_Lacrosse) October 28, 2020

Ellis served as an example for those in the Hempstead community, using lacrosse to help him succeed at Garden City High School. He parlayed his success there to a collegiate career at Hofstra and eventually a spot on the Lizards.

“In Hempstead, Ellis had family members facing incarceration. He had family members and friends who did not have beds to sleep on,” Major League Lacrosse wrote in an official release accompanying the video. “The expectation for his Hempstead peers was to show up to school and then maybe graduate, maybe not, and then go get a job. By attending Garden City, Ellis was on a new path.”

Looking back on his journey, Ellis said he’s just a product of his environment.

“I come from a place where two towns meet,” Ellis said in the video. “Rich meets poor. White meets Black. Republicans meet Democrat … You are a product of your environment, but you can make constant choices to be a part of that environment in a positive way or a negative way.”

Brian Simpkins of Blaxers Blog profiled Ellis’ upbringing in a September story on USLaxMagazine.com.