PLAY 60: Annual event combines local group’s love for football, community

WASILLA — Nearly 300 boys and girls spent their afternoon on the Menard Sports Center indoor turf field Tuesday.

Groups shuffled from station to station.

Football, soccer, baseball, field hockey and more.

It was all part of the annual Play 60 Challenge, an event the Mat-Su Sea Hawkers have hosted in the Valley for the past 11 years. It’s based on the National Football League’s campaign to encourage children to become more physically active for at least 60 minutes per day. The Sea Hawkers, the local chapter of the Seattle Seahawks booster club, are united by their love for their favorite NFL franchise. But Tuesday represented more than just a fascination for football.

“It’s not about competition, not about scoring points,” Tom Spindler, of the Sea Hawkers, said. “It’s about showing you can do just about anything and have fun with other people. And that’s what we want you to do. Sixty minutes a day, get out and play.”

The annual event also includes special guests, members of the Seattle Seahawks organization. Seattle offensive lineman Joey Hunt and Jordan Roos made the trip to the 49th state this year. Hunt said it’s good to see the diversity of the activities for those who participated in the event.

“I grew up playing multiple sports,” Hunt, a second-year center from Texas Christian University, said. “I feel like sports are a good things for kids to do. You learn a lot in sports.”

Palmer High School football coach Rod Christiansen was there with his sons Adam and Aaron, and a handful of his players to organize football drills. Pitchers on the Mat-Su Miners tossed underhand to participants. Other volunteers organized field hockey and soccer stations.

Hunt said he was excited to see the turnout.

“I think it’s awesome, going out showing kids, just be active,” Hunt said. “I’m really excited to get to do this.”

Tuesday’s time at the Menard was a piece of a packed trip to Alaska for the Seattle players, and Mike Flood, the Seahawks vice president of community outreach. Following the event Tuesday afternoon, the group attended a fundraiser hosted by the Sea Hawkers at the Palmer Elks Lodge, which will benefit the United Way of Mat-Su and the Sea Hawkers. Wednesday the Sea Hawkers and the Seahawks spent the day in Bethel. The group visited Southcentral Alaska hospitals on Thursday.

“We’ve gotten to a point now, we’re always hitting the Mat-Su Valley and Anchorage, but now we’re picking out other places every year,” Flood said. “Something different every year.”

The Sea Hawkers and the Seahawks made trips to Kotzebue and Barrow in past years. Wednesday marked their first stop in Bethel.

“We love the fact the Seahawks can have an influence up here. Even though it’s a huge state, if we keep working at it, we’ll hit every corner eventually,” Flood said.

Flood said it’s a great experience for the Seahawks and those they visit in the Alaska communities.

“One of the cool things about that, for the players, they get to see something totally different. A lifestyle they have not see before,” Flood said. “And for the people that are there, for us to be able to reach them and connect with them, we love that part of it.”

Hunt, making his first trip to Alaska, said he was looking forward to seeing the state.

“It’s beautiful. Just the drive in,” Hunt said. “I’m from Texas everything is flat. You don’t see mountains like that. I’m excited to see all the wildlife, everything in Alaska.”

Hunt said the visit to Bethel is a special experience.

“I’m from a small town. I’m excited to see a small town in Alaska, and how different it is,” Hunt said.

Flood lauded the Mat-Su Sea Hawkers for their continued support of not just the Seahawks, but their community.

“For them to care so much about the community up here is a big deal to us,” Flood said.

Flood said there are more than 50 Seahawks booster clubs across the globe. Germany, England, Mexico, the United States. And he had high praise for the Mat-Su chapter.

“Mat-Su is one of the strongest of any,” Flood said.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.