History & Timeline

On September 20, 1993, Greater Buffalo Gymnastics Center opened its doors to the Amherst community and surrounding areas. After years of overcoming obstacles, a now triumphant Hirsch Family continues to appreciate the reality of their dreams. 

The Beginnings: A Family's Dream

Torey Hirsch and Sharon DePeters met in an 8th grade gymnastics talent show at Heim Middle School and stayed involved in the sport ever since. Throughout high school, they competed for Williamsville North. Although they attended separate colleges, their love for gymnastics and each other continued to grow. Sharon graduated from Canisius College and Sisters Hospital of Nursing with an RN degree. Torey graduated from Ohio State University with a psychology degree. 

After graduation, Torey returned to Amherst and the two married in 1980. They continued to coach gymnastics in the area and their family started with the arrival of son TJ, then daughter Jacquie. Both Torey and Sharon worked nights at Buffalo General Hospital in their respective fields, taught gymnastics during the day, continued to raise a family, and at time, even held additional jobs. 

The dream of providing gymnastics instruction and building the self-confidence of children on their own terms, in their own facility, was a vision Torey and Sharon always shared. After years of searching, they found the perfect spot, but obstacles remained ahead. 

A Dream is Born: Greater Buffalo Gymnastics Center

In 1988 after negotiating the land purchase, the first of many proposals was presented to the Town of Amherst Planning Board. The Hirsch family battled through the town's rezoning process, uncooperative weather conditions, clearing acres of property by hand, and multiple other obstacles. 

Despite these challenges, Torey took on the general contracting himself, enlisting the help of the whole family, and construction began. In 1993, Greater Buffalo Gymnastics Center’s doors opened for the first time. 

Over the next two decades, Greater Buffalo developed thousands of student-athletes and produced National Qualifiers, Regional Champions, State Champions, and multiple scholarship recipients. Numerous exhibitions and public appearances were performed by many Greater Buffalo competitive team gymnasts at Artpark, Buffalo Bisons games, Williamsville’s Old Home Days, and many more. All this and more led to Greater Buffalo becoming a household name in the Western New York Community and beyond. 

It was during this time that the Hirsch children grew up and attended the same high school as their parents. TJ graduated college with a degree in business management from Geneseo State University where he holds 2 school records in diving, was a three-time state champion, and an NCAA National All-American. Using his degree, he served as project manager for the facility’s initial $1.7 million expansion in 2005, and simultaneously started his own company located at the same complex. 

Following in her big brother’s footsteps, Jacquie also attended Geneseo. She kept up the family’s tradition of college sports and education. Her freshman year was spent learning the ropes of the diving team from her brother where she placed in the top 5 at the conference championships. She worked at Greater Buffalo whenever she was home from school, teaching classes, summer camps, and running the Pro-Shop. Jacquie was well on her way to graduating with a degree in early childhood education and was very excited to return home and work with children in the family business. 

Devastating News: Picking up the Pieces

Jacquie was only 2 months away from finishing her student teaching and graduating when she was diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia on September 28, 2007.

The next 11 months had a profound effect on the family, the gymnastics center, and the entire community. With her mom, dad, and brother by her side, she endured countless hospital stays, several treatments of chemotherapy and radiation, and two bone marrow transplants. All of this proved to be too much for her body to handle, and sadly, Jacquie was taken from us on September 6, 2008, at the age of 23. 



Jacquie had big plans for her future that involved the education of children both in the classroom and at Greater Buffalo. Although she will never have her own classroom, the life lessons she taught live on in each of us as we continue to teach children and enrich lives, both at Greater Buffalo and through The Jacquie Hirsch For A.L.L. Foundation. 

Our 2nd Generation: The Legacy Continues

In 2023, after years of preparation, Torey and Sharon Hirsch officially completed their succession transition to son TJ and his business partner Kristen Fahnestock. One of Jacquie’s best friends from high school, Kristen began working in the Client Services department at the gym in 2010. She has a BA in Advertising & Public Relations and an MBA, both from Penn State University. 

Both TJ and Kristen worked side-by-side with Torey and Sharon throughout the years on the organization’s vision, mission, values, and growth. The opportunity TJ and Kristen had to work so closely with the founders proved invaluable as, only 1 year later in 2024, Torey was also taken from us by cancer. We miss him every day and appreciate his lifelong dedication to the sport, his employees, and especially to the members of our community that he cherished working with, teaching, and mentoring. TJ and Kristen are honored to carry on the torch for Greater Buffalo Gymnastics and have vowed to carry it onward and upward into the future, while simultaneously preserving its history and legacy. 

Today, Greater Buffalo Gymnastics Center is part of a family friendly complex unique to New York State. As the anchor tenant, this once thought too small for a parcel of land has grown into a five-acre complex with more than 50,000 square feet that serves over 1,500 families each week. 

Continued expansions, improvements, and strategic innovations to the complex ensure the most up to date instructional setting for all programs and the best atmosphere for families. The most recent of which in 2025 added 6,000 square feet and included a variety of additional features and equipment for each gym department plus an expanded viewing area for family and friends. 

The Greater Buffalo Gymnastics Center complex was built because of the Hirsch Family’s driving ideals. This specially designed complex allows for activities the whole family can enjoy and a place the whole community can be proud of. These are the principles held by Torey, Sharon, TJ, and Jacquie that opened the doors over 30 years ago. 

“Through our Doors Pass Champions” 

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