12 2 STA T .5 2 0 2 CON C UR R E NT RESO L UT I ONS — SE P T. 22 , 200 8Wher e asc h ild re n and ad o lescen t s f re qu entl y do not ha v e the p hysio - lo g ical drive to drin k enough fluids to replenish s w eat losses during prolonged e x ercise
Whereas youth athletes m ay b e more easily distracted by team- mates and spectators when given the opportunity to rest and rehydrate; Whereas a recent study found that 70 percent of afterschool athletes arrive on the playing field already dehydrated; Whereas heat-induced illness is one of the most preventable sports ailments and parents , young athletes, and coaches need to under- stand the physiological factors that increase the risk for heat- related illness and take steps to prevent it; Whereas 13 -year-old K endrick F incher from R ogers, A rkansas, col- lapsed during an August pre-season football practice, was rushed to the hospital, and for the next 1 8 days his family waited anxiously for him to regain consciousness, tragically never regained consciousness, and died on August 25 ,1 9 95, from multi- system organ failure as a result of heat stroke; Whereas Kendrick ’ s parents, Rhonda and M ike Fincher, founded the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation in honor of their son, with the aim to raise awareness of the potentially deadly consequences of dehydration for student athletes and to provide schools with the information and equipment needed to ensure other students do not suffer from heat stroke; Whereas the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation has distrib- uted more than 130,000 water bottles and heat illness prevention pamphlets to children and athletes throughout the U nited S tates; Whereas the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation oversees con- sultation with school district athletic programs to ensure they have procedures in place to prevent heat illness and dehydration; Whereas the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation provides heat stroke awareness and steps for prevention at local health fairs, community events, and the Annual Y outh Run through ‘ ‘cool huts’’, misting stations, and free ice water; Whereas G atorade C ompany j oined forces with the N ational Foot- ball L eague to lead a nationwide ‘‘ B eat the H eat’’ campaign aimed at educating parents and football coaches about the impor- tance of hydration in order to keep athletes safe in the hot summer months; and Whereas Gatorade Company and the National Football League held Gatorade D onation Days at training camps to raise money to raise awareness of the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation
Now, therefore, be it Resolv e dbyth e H o u seo f Re pr ese n t a t i ves ( the S enate c oncur - rin g),T hat —( 1 ) it is the sense of Congress that— (A) National Heat Stroke Awareness Month provides an opportunity to educate the people of the United States about heat stroke; (B) the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation should be applauded for its efforts in promoting awareness about heat stroke; and (C) policymakers, parents, coaches, student athletes, not-for-profit organi z ations, and other members of the
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