Storm Football staying on top of helmet safety

KELLOGG — It’s August and that means a lot of things, but for many — the most important thing is that football season is right around the corner and that goes for the Kellogg Storm Junior Tackle Football Program as well.

New program coordinator Cory North has been busy in the offseason with his crew of player and parent volunteers who have been fundraising for the program.

North’s initial focus has been raising enough money to outfit each player in this upcoming season with a brand new helmet.

“Helmet safety and head safety is the most important thing to me for these kids,” North said. “We had a bunch of helmets that had been expired for some time and basically having the kids play in them was a huge liability.”

Football helmets should be certified annually, but can go roughly two seasons before it becomes mandatory — which the former helmets had surpassed.

According to the National Athletic Equipment Reconditioners Association, helmets should be reconditioned at least every two years for 10 years, the life of the helmet.

These rules don’t just apply at the junior tackle levels, but all the way up to the NFL.

After fundraising $5,400 this last year, the program will have the money to get the helmets, as well as having Riddell (the helmet manufacturer) come out to make sure each player gets his helmet fitted properly.

“Helmet safety is No. 1 for the Storm Program,” North said. “We want these kids to be as safe as possible so that football can be a fun, memorable experience for them.”

The Kellogg Storm has quite the list of upcoming events for its players including:

Helmet fitting with Riddell on Monday, Aug. 5, at 3 p.m. at the Kellogg Middle School track (near the shed).

Storm football camp with the Kellogg High School Football Program is set for Aug. 6-7, from 6 to 8 p.m. each day.

Storm practices will begin on Monday, Aug. 12, at 5 p.m. behind Kellogg High School.

For more information, check out the Kellogg Storm Football Facebook page.