Good Afternoon STRYFA Family,

We hope that you have had a wonderful summer thus far and are enjoying the start of the school year. We know that everyone is very busy with "back to school and getting ready for the 2016 football season. We wanted to take this time to communicate to all of you about some very exciting announcements and updates for the season.

Inaugural Year Team Numbers

This being our inaugural year we are not expecting to fill a team in every division. That being said we have some divisions that are just a few participants shy of a full team. Every team is required to have a minimum number of players to play or the team will be disbanded. We hope that our parents will help with putting the word out to get those last few registrations we need. To help facilitate this we have extended our registration on the condition that all paperwork is turned in on the day of sign up. We will have two more live registrations. One on Friday August 12th at the Horseshoe Equestrian Park from 7:00pm-10pm and Saturday at Native New Yorker from 11:00pm-2pm. Please tell your friends, family and neighbors.

Due To Demand And Request, Registration Has Been Extended

We have had several requests from parents asking to have registration extended in order to provide them with the additional time to register their child and we've listened to their needs. Registration has been extended an additional 9 days. If you know of any parent that would like to register their child, but they thought they missed the opportunity to do so, you can direct them to the online registration at STRYFA's site:

www.stryfa.com

Has your child had their physical, yet?

Alliance Urgent Care is currently offering $10 physicals. All Alliance Urgent Care facilities are open Monday through Friday 8 AM to 8 PM and Saturday through Sunday 8 AM to 6 PM. You can check in online to avoid the wait. All children must have their physical in order to participate in San Tan Regional Youth Football Association's season on the first day of practice.

Are you and your child ready for the first day of practice? August 8th!!!

You and Your child will need several things in order to be ready for your first day of practice. These forms can be found on our website at www.stryfa.com

• Previous year's Report Card
• Birth Certificate (copy is acceptable)
• Signed Medical Clearance/Physical Form (UYF form can be found on our website or AIA form will be accepted)
• Signed Participation waiver
• Code of Conduct Form signed
• General Sign Up Form completed and signed
• Signed Parental Permission and Waiver Form
• Equipment your child must bring for practice (First day of practice):
  • Shirt
  • Shorts
  • Cleats - Molded Cleats ONLY!! No screw-in cleats

We do not suggest having separate water bottles. We like to keep the team together on the field for the entire practice. We use and provide squirt water bottles so that kids are not sharing water. Gatorade, etc is of course allowed.

Pass and Play Program

We are excited to invite all of our parents to turn in their old cleats. We all know how quickly kids grow out of cleats and most of the time they are still in very good condition. These cleats can be passed down to families that are in need. We thank you for your support!!

Equipment and Uniforms

We will spend the first few days of practice sizing your children for uniforms and pads which are included in your registration cost. We do this to try and give your child a correct fitting uniform although the system isn't full proof. We will be going with integrated pants this year. Helmet rentals are $30 plus a $20 dollar refundable deposit. These will be handed out later in the week. If you are renting a helmet through STRYFA, chins straps will be provided. Again some children find these chin straps to be uncomfortable. If that is the case we recommend purchasing an upgraded chin strap for your child, which can be purchased for about $10 at a Dick's Sporting Goods. All participants will be provided with a tethered mouthpiece. Some children do not find these mouth pieces comfortable. You can purchase a Shock Doctor Mouthpiece at Dick's (and other stores) for approx. $10. Shock Doctor Mouthpieces generally carry a $10,000 dental insurance. That can change due to the style of mouth piece. If you will be purchasing a mouthpiece for your child it must be a tethered-based mouthpiece.

If you will be purchasing your own helmet, the helmet must be Dark Navy Blue and must be certified through the 2016 season.

Practice Dates, Times, and Protocols

Our practices are being held at American Leadership Academy San Tan Campus In the Morning Sun Farms Community. This is not the campus near Ironwood. The address is 34696 N Village Ln, San Tan Valley, AZ 85142. Please park in front of the school and walk down the pathway to the back of the school. Vehicles are not allowed in back lot.

Our first 2 weeks of practice are conditioning weeks. Week one shirts, shorts, cleats. Week two we will add helmets and shoulder pads. This is to help acclimate the children to the heat. Each child must log 20 hours of conditioning time so if you miss a practice that time will have to be made up week 2 and so on. Week 3 &4  the kids will begin full contact.

Practice is from 6-8pm Monday through Friday until games begin. Practice starts promptly so please arrive prior to allow for clothes change, cleat change, etc. Once games begin we will then go to 3-4 days a week. Days will be determined at a later time.

ALA has been good enough to open their restroom facility to us. This is a wonderful privilege and we ask that parents accompany their kids to the restroom. If the restrooms are left messy we will lose that privilege and no one wants that! The restrooms are located inside the gym but siblings/children are not allowed to play in there. There is a playground on the campus but please use caution when letting your kids play as we and the school are not responsible for any injuries.

During practice we ask that all parents stay off the field. We have found much success in the team sticking together for the full practice and letting the coaches concentrate on developing our kiddos. If you have any questions or concerns you can always address the coaches after a practice or email them directly. Please do not interrupt practice. We like the idea that once the kids are on the field, they are our kids and we will do our best to care for them.

Games

Games will be held at San Tan Foothills High School. Dates and times are to be determined. We are waiting on the conference schedulers to release the final schedule.

Cheer

We have received an unexpected amount interest in cheer. We are very happy to see that there are so many kids interested in cheer and look forward to making that program happen for you. We will continue to take interest forms and update you as soon as there are enough participants. We are very excited at the thought of having a cheer program our first year. We have been working with some very experienced cheer directors but are still in need of a head coach. If you know someone willing to be the Head Coach please contact Kim (480-834-7328) directly so we can move forward with this program and give our kids a great experience!

Volunteers

If you or anyone you know would like to volunteer please contact us. Non-profits like us are only successful because of its volunteers. If you’re interested in coaching football or cheer, helping during game day or just a parent helping on the field holding a tackling bag, we welcome your help and cannot express that programs like ours don't happen without you!!

We are excited with the way the inaugural season is progressing and we look forward to more growth, new partnerships, and bringing a rewarding experience to your children’s lives. As always, if you have any questions or concerns about any the upcoming season, we are always available to speak with you. We hope the rest of your summer is enjoyable and we look forward to seeing each of you throughout the season.

Sincerely,

STRYFA Board
480-834-7328