Frankenmuth

When the 2020 football team hopped on the buses to Ford Field in January, they were not wearing the traditional Frankenmuth colors of red or gray. Instead, they wore black "Salute to Service" sweatshirts with gold lettering as a nod to our local American Legion members. The football team has been working with the American Legion for eight years. Every summer, the team spends a day sprucing up the outside and cleaning the inside of the Legion Hall, only missing this past summer due to COVID restrictions. In return, the Legion members faithfully raise the American flag before each home game, give the team a location for their annual banquet, and provide flags to our schools. Coach Phil Martin said, "The team takes a lot of pride in our connection with the American Legion. The cancellation of the summer cleanup was something every kid made note of, and all of us are looking forward to getting back there this July." Like other service organizations, traditional forms of revenue have been a challenge. The American Legion members have been unable to rent the hall, hold their annual Easter Egg Hunt, or even gather for regular meetings and ceremonies. Understanding this fiscal difficulty, Frankenmuth assistant coach and Marine veteran Logan Raymond worked closely with Steve Grasel to design the team sweatshirts to wear to Ford Field as well as serve as a fundraiser to help our local American Legion. Steve was happy to assist, but was faced with supply chain issues and could only get enough to outfit players. Now the shirts are available for everyone and can be purchased at Grasel Graphics for $60, with $5 from each sweatshirt sold donated to our local American Legion. To purchase a sweatshirt, call Grasel Graphics at 989-652-5151. Frankenmuth football player Darren Agans departs for Ford Field with his team. Photo credit Chip DeGrace The Frankenmuth football teams helps with the yardwork at the American Legion building. Regular testing does bring anxiety and possible adverse ramifications. A rapid test is not perfect. MDHHS assures us that the Binax Now test (the one currently used) is accurate for negative tests. But if an asymptomatic athlete tests positive on the rapid test, they would immediately be sent for a PCR test. A Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) is the current gold standard test for detecting COVID-19. The Saginaw County Health Department (SCHD) under the direction of Dr. Delicia Pruitt and Christina Harrington, have allowed athletes in our county to go to their facility to be tested with efficient result returns. If the PCR determines that the rapid test was a false positive, athletes can get back to their sport. If they indeed test positive with the PCR, the athlete will be isolated, close contact tracing will be done, and those close contacts will be asked to quarantine. SCHD has excellent resources with all of that information at their website www.saginawpublichealth.org under the "Coronavirus" tab with the heading of "Latest Information," or at saginawpublichealth.org/coronavirus/latest-updates. More educational information may be found on the MHSAA website at www.mhsaa.com under the "Health and Safety" tab or at mhsaa.com/Schools/Health-Safety-Resources. A Golden Salute The American Legion members Gary O'Connell, Ken Poellet, and Bob Frank raise the flag before the Marine City football game in January. – Photo credit: Scott Wenzel, Frankenmuth News. 9

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