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A huge concern among parents letting their children play football or other contact sports is increasingly becoming the risk of head trauma.
And the Bay Shore Youth Football League is trying to keep the kids in their care as safe as possible.
“We are trying to roll over to a higher model helmet,”said the league’s president, Joe Rao, who is leading fundraising efforts for the new, safer equipment.
The Bay Shore Youth Football League, which currently fields 140 players between the ages of seven to 13, wants to bring in the newly designed Schutt Vengeance A3 helmet.
The Schutt youth helmet has a lower profile and a lighter composite, all meant to help prevent a player’s head from being weighed down, resulting in spearing tackle.
“When your neck and heads are up, you’re not leading with your head,” said Rao, who has been with the league for the last seven years.
There are other new safety features as well.
The goal is to raise $10,000 for 100 helmets by November through an exchange program for the older gear, said Rao.
As of now, the league has raised around $2,500 through players selling candy, as well as through partnerships with local businesses like Blaze Pizza in Bay Shore and Modell’s Sporting Goods.
LOOKING TO HELP?
The league has set up a GoFundMe page for individual donations.
The next fundraising event will be at Local Burger Co. in Bay Shore on Wednesday, Oct. 11, from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. When the bill comes, present the coupon below and the league will receive 15 percent of the proceeds.
Top: A line of older helmets being used by the Bay Shore Youth Football League. (courtesy)
