First Bank Hampton donates masks for 7-12 H-D-CAL athletes, coaches

A local business ensured that students and coaches have an added layer of safety as activities return amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

First Bank Hampton recently donated 150 protective face masks to players and coaches in all Hampton-Dumont-CAL athletic programs in grades seven through 12.

“We had the idea to try to help the school out with some protective measures, particularly with the athletics and extra curricular activities,” said Tyler Heeren, First Bank Senior Vice President. “We contacted a couple administrators at the high school and got ahold of (activities director) Christi Weiser. She showed immediate interested and we coordinated with her to provide masks to all high school and junior high athletes, cheerleaders and coaches.”

Each mask contains the H-D-CAL name and a Bulldog logo, with a small First Bank logo. Weiser said the masks were much welcomed because they not only fill a new need not seen in athletics before, but they add a splash of uniformity to junior high and high school activities.

“We’re really trying with athletics and activities to take a seven through 12 approach with how we view things and when we have a group like First Bank be willing to support that vision in little ways and big ways, it’s amazing,” she said. “Our middle school kids look up to our high school kids and if our middle school kids can have something the same as the high school kids…that’s huge.

“It presents that seven to 12 unified front,” she added. Heeren said the masks, produced by Team Effort of Clarion, were given to the school on a “no strings attached” basis, meaning the teams are free to use them as they wish.

“We provided them and just hoped they could make good use out of them and encouraged them to use them in whatever way they saw fit,” he said.

Weiser said the coaches can dictate when masks are worn, but she’s noticed participation and cooperation with mask wearing by both players and coaches on the sidelines, as well as by some players during gameplay. Students also wear the masks on buses to and from activities.

“Our kids and coaches have done a great job of meeting standards and expectations,” she said.

Heeren said the bank is happy to support the school’s programs in any way possible, especially as they begin seasons under such unpredictable and unprecedented circumstances.

“We want to recognize and be supportive of staff, administration, the kids and their families,” he said. “We wanted to support their efforts to make these athletics and extracurricular activities possible for the kids within our school district because wee feel that it’s important for these kids to have that opportunity.

“We understand we’re operating under difficult circumstances but there are some measures that have to be taken to make that happen and we wanted to be supportive in any way we can,” he added.

The gesture, Weiser said, is not just helpful in a physical sense, but provides an added layer of community support for which H-D-CAL has become known.

“One of the reasons I moved my family to Hampton was the support for education, the support for our youth in monetary ways and every other way possible,” she said. “For any of our businesses…just the little ways and the big ways they support us when we’re working through all these things and trying to keep our kids engaged and safe…we’re able to do so because we have outside resources and support.”