Cancelled for a season, but united for a reason. The LA Story.

Still Going Strong.

The Los Angeles Flag Football (LAFF) League had the biggest registration numbers this spring in history.  The the skills day and team draft was complete, and uniforms were ordered in preparation for opening weekend.  Then it happened.  While the East Coast was being hit hard with the COVID-19 health crisis, the State of California moved ahead and put Social Distancing orders in place that prevented groups and crowds to gather.  

That's when Tom Ensminger and the LA Board had to make the incredibly tough decision to cancel the season.  Board member Jordan Hall commented "We knew this would be a hardship on league finances, but there was no hesitation as to whether we would quickly and swiftly figure out a way to get refunds to our players. For some, this would be a matter of surviving for another week. This refund would mean providing groceries for their families."  

But cancelling the season did not mean, they needed to cancel the relationships, and the community that people needed to bring together. Tom and the board quickly thought of ways to unite the league, and continued to make the commitment to Connect and Unite the players, refs through a different format.  


First it was the uniforms.  Through a generous donor, all uniforms were sent to all players to get them to be connected to their teams.  A survey was sent out to ask where players were, if they were alone in their house, or perhaps staying with their family or partners, to make sure the uniforms were sent to the right places.  



Commissioner Tom states "It was important to still continue a sense of community through these teams that had been drafted, we all come together for Flag Football, but also these teams are important in the experiences."  Board member Michael Annichiarico shared, "we still wanted to find a way to still keep LAFF players involved & engaged. We still  continued weekly posts on social media. Captains still engaging with players on their individual group threads and checking on their mental well being."  Teams coordinated with the captains and their team photos were created, many of them with social distancing themes, all from players with masks on, or even everyone having rolls of toilet paper in hands.   

Continuing the Commitment.

The League also continued their service projects by volunteering at the LA Food Bank as well, and completed a service project during the season.  "The LA Food Bank volunteer event was awesome." Nicholas Schmid, Board member and the Black Team Captain stated.  He was placed on a responsibility of placing oranges in plastic bags and sorting them out for food bank pick up distributions, and worked with a team to contribute to the greater operation of the LA Food bank.  He shared some of his reflections on his experience of the service opportunity and what it meant to him.  "Not only did I feel that the experience helped me to strengthen my relationship with existing league members but it also gave me a better sense of the community I live and better understand how just a couple of hours here and there can make a big impact.

"I was super excited for this season, I had high hopes of making friends and getting to play a game I love." stated Chris Halcromb, a first time player for the LAFF for the Spring 2020 season.  Though this would have been his first season in the LAFF, he is still feeling connected to his would-have-been teammates through this new engagement opportunities the league has created.  Chris also shared  "we do a happy hour each week with different challenges. we as a team have a group chat which constantly keeps us up to date with each player and how they're doing."  Jordan added as a responsibility as a community, "we feel so strongly about staying connected virtually. Even if just for an hour, we can come together and share laughs, sometimes encourage one another through challenges, but most of all, be united again as we are on the field."  

(Photo from LAFF Virtual Scavenger Hunt Challenge) 

We want to thank the LAFF Community, Captains, and the entire Board for continuing to Connect our players through this new experience and continuing to dedicate the time to Unite the community members through this powerful experience.  Commissioner Tom said it best, "It is important to bring our people together, because it's what matters to all of us, it's the simple but powerful message of Compete, Connect, Unite, it's what we do."  

Compete. Connect. Unite.  

Thank you Los Angeles.