Minor dreams become
major fun for everyone

Flag football for kids brings out a crowd of fans BY CHUCK TUCK | JOURNAL REPORTER A lot of boys grow-up playing football and mimic their favorite players. Some may even continue playing through high school, then on to college, and still a number of them dream of playing in the NFL.

At the same time, little girls grow up playing house, dream of becoming scientists or moms while others dream of becoming a cheerleader for a football team.

Recently, some of those dreams came true for a handful of kids when they gathered for the first official Lake Stevens Cup at the Lake Stevens High School football field.

The NFL Flag Football league is part of the Boys and Girls Club organization which gives young boys the opportunity to play against teams from Snohomish, Edmonds, Monroe, Marysville, and Arlington.

Head Coach for the Lake Stevens Vikings flag football team this year is Dirk Kruiswyk and on that day his team walked away with a decisive victory.
“My team was the eight and nine year-olds,” Kruiswyk said.

Kruiswyk’s involvement began with a phone call he received from the Boys and Girls Club asking if he would like to coach a flag football team.
“The Boys & Girls Club called me because they needed another coach so I agreed to do it,” he said. “I recruited my brother-in-law, Erik Sundin who was the offensive coach and his best friend, Taylor Pesch who was the defensive coach to help me out.”

The idea of having the Lake Stevens Cup came about when Kruiswyk looked at a game schedule and saw two Lake Stevens’ teams had to travel to Edmonds to play a game.

“When I saw the schedule which had the two Lake Stevens’ teams playing each other but having to drive to an Edmonds field it got me thinking, why not play in Lake Stevens and make it a big deal for the kids and that is when I came up with the 1st Annual Lake Stevens Cup,” Kruiswyk said.

The success of the game was apparent by looking into the stands at all the people cheering and having a good time.

David Edgar came out that morning to watch the coach’s son play, saying that he was there to watch Dirk Jr.

“There’s even tailgating in the parking lot,” said Brice Christensen, a friend of Edgar who was also there as a fan.

The tailgating party was actually a chili feed after the game which made for a perfect way to end the day for everyone.

Edgar talked about sportsmanship and how being on a team can help young people.

“Team sports go a long way,” he said.

Kruiswyk also said that it teaches teamwork, discipline, and helps to develop their social skills.

“Some of my best memories are from my days of playing Little League sports,” he said.

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