Mosquitoes are not deterring a determined group of Plymouth North High School students and parents from trying to persuade town officials to bring back Friday night football.
They’re calling for an exception to the closure of parks and fields from dusk to dawn to allow home games to start at 7 p.m. instead of 4 p.m., as is now required.
After the state last month categorized Plymouth as being at high risk for infection with Eastern Equine Encephalitis – a rare but frequently deadly mosquito-borne illness – the town closed parks and fields from dusk to dawn to minimize exposure to mosquitoes.
Scott Hokanson, whose son Jacoby is a Plymouth North football player, said he was approached by the mothers of two seniors on the Plymouth North Eagles football team, Jessica Pierce and Susan Reynolds. He said Pierce and Reynolds told him they were frustrated that their sons’ Friday night games had been rescheduled to afternoons to protect players and spectators from mosquito bites. Pierce and Reynolds declined to comment for this story.
Hokanson, who is president of Plymouth-based Brabo Insurance, invited the captains of the football team to his office to discuss the situation.
“They came in all their Sunday best, and we sat around a whiteboard and came up with all the reasons why they felt we should keep Friday night lights,” he said.
Hokanson said the students asked him to speak on their behalf for this story.
“It is something that brings the whole school together,” he told the Independent, referring to Friday night home games.
He voiced the players’ argument at the Sep. 4 Select Board meeting, hoping to persuade town officials to allow a 7 p.m. kickoff time for games on Sept. 13 (this Friday), Sep. 27, and Oct. 18.
“Friday night lights has been taken away,” Hokanson told the board. “The Town of Plymouth does not shut down between 7 and 9 p.m., but Plymouth North will be on these three very important dates, and we just don’t think that’s correct.”
“Parents that have invested an incredible amount of money, time, and effort over the years won’t be able to see their kids play because they’ll be at work,” he said. Hokanson added that players, band members, and cheerleaders work hard to ready for games days, but few people can attend in the afternoon.
A petition to allow Friday night games has more than 500 signatures, he said.
Peter Parcellin, principal of Plymouth North sympathizes, but said it’s not up to him or the school to determine whether it’s safe to play after dark.
“Everyone knows I absolutely love seeing our kids out there for Friday night football under the lights, so I’m hopeful there will be an opportunity to give that to this great group of kids playing football this year,” Parcellin said. “However, we will continue to follow whatever guidance or directives that come from town decision makers.”
Middleborough, which is also at high risk for EEE, held its Sept. 5 varsity football game at 4 p.m. and will play its next home game, on Friday, at 3:30 PM, but subsequent home games are scheduled for Fridays at 7 p.m.
Plymouth South principal Patty Fry said she was not aware of the efforts at Plymouth North. Last week, she told the Independent that parents and students are finding the schedule change disappointing, but emphasized that “safety is number one, always”.
The risk of EEE in Plymouth is real, and with warm temperatures expected into the weekend, mosquito activity is not likely to abate. Town Manager Derek Brindisi pointed out at last week’s Select Board meeting that a Plymouth resident is among the four people statewide who have been infected with EEE. He added that when town officials met with state officials on Sep. 3, he asked whether the risk level for Plymouth might soon be lowered so that the town could lift its dusk-to-dawn curfew. He said the state committed to a conference call on Sep. 16 to review the data.
That would preclude allowing Friday night’s game to start at 7 but leaves open the possibility of night games on Sep. 27 and Oct. 18.
Brindisi said if the town were to leave fields and parks open after dusk, parents would be forced into making decisions about whether to allow their children to participate in sports. That could affect team rosters, he said.
“It degrades the season by doing it that way, versus taking probably more of a draconian approach – saying we’re just not going to allow it – so then it forces all parents, all families to have to reschedule their activities in a safer manner,” Brindisi said.
But Hokanson told the Independent that parents can decide what’s best for their children.
“We don’t need the town to do it for us,” he said. “If it’s really that dangerous we should be shutting everything down.”
Fred Thys can be reached at fred@plymouthindependent.org.