[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 296 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.Con.Res.296
                                            Agreed to September 22, 2008

                       One Hundred Tenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE SECOND SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday,
            the third day of January, two thousand and eight


                          Concurrent Resolution

Whereas heat stroke is a medical emergency that can be fatal if not 
  properly and promptly treated, and 50 percent of those with heat 
  stroke die from it;

Whereas children absorb more heat from a hot environment because they 
  have greater surface area-to-body mass ratio than adults;

Whereas the smaller the child, the faster he or she can overheat;

Whereas children and adolescents may have a reduced ability to 
  dissipate heat through sweating;

Whereas children and adolescents frequently do not have the 
  physiological drive to drink enough fluids to replenish sweat losses 
  during prolonged exercise;

Whereas youth athletes may be more easily distracted by teammates and 
  spectators when given the opportunity to rest and rehydrate;

Whereas a recent study found that 70 percent of afterschool athletes 
  arrive on the playing field already dehydrated;

Whereas heat-induced illness is one of the most preventable sports 
  ailments and parents, young athletes, and coaches need to understand 
  the physiological factors that increase the risk for heat-related 
  illness and take steps to prevent it;

Whereas 13-year-old Kendrick Fincher from Rogers, Arkansas, collapsed 
  during an August pre-season football practice, was rushed to the 
  hospital, and for the next 18 days his family waited anxiously for 
  him to regain consciousness, tragically never regained consciousness, 
  and died on August 25, 1995, from multi-system organ failure as a 
  result of heat stroke;

Whereas Kendrick's parents, Rhonda and Mike Fincher, founded the 
  Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation in honor of their son, with the 
  aim to raise awareness of the potentially deadly consequences of 
  dehydration for student athletes and to provide schools with the 
  information and equipment needed to ensure other students do not 
  suffer from heat stroke;

Whereas the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation has distributed more 
  than 130,000 water bottles and heat illness prevention pamphlets to 
  children and athletes throughout the United States;

Whereas the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation oversees consultation 
  with school district athletic programs to ensure they have procedures 
  in place to prevent heat illness and dehydration;

Whereas the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation provides heat stroke 
  awareness and steps for prevention at local health fairs, community 
  events, and the Annual Youth Run through ``cool huts'', misting 
  stations, and free ice water;

Whereas Gatorade Company joined forces with the National Football 
  League to lead a nationwide ``Beat the Heat'' campaign aimed at 
  educating parents and football coaches about the importance of 
  hydration in order to keep athletes safe in the hot summer months; 
  and

Whereas Gatorade Company and the National Football League held Gatorade 
  Donation Days at training camps to raise money to raise awareness of 
  the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation: Now, therefore, be it

    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), 
That--
        (1) it is the sense of Congress that--
            (A) National Heat Stroke Awareness Month provides an 
        opportunity to educate the people of the United States about 
        heat stroke;
            (B) the Kendrick Fincher Memorial Foundation should be 
        applauded for its efforts in promoting awareness about heat 
        stroke; and
            (C) policymakers, parents, coaches, student athletes, not-
        for-profit organizations, and other members of the community 
        should work to increase awareness and prevention of heat 
        stroke; and
        (2) Congress urges national and community organizations, 
    businesses in the private sector, and the media, through National 
    Heat Stroke Awareness Month to promote the awareness of heat 
    stroke.
Attest:

                                 Clerk of the House of Representatives.

Attest:

                                               Secretary of the Senate.