By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer
PHILADELPHIA (AP)
— If the chorus of "Fly! Eagles! Fly!" or "E-A-G-L-E-S" chants become
too overwhelming for fans with sensory needs at Lincoln Financial Field,
the Philadelphia Eagles took a big step to make sure those fans don't
have to leave the event.
The Eagles partnered with Children's
Hospital of Philadelphia and nonprofit KultureCity in the offseason to
build a state-of-the-art sensory room on a suite level inside the Linc
to accommodate fans and families managing sensory challenges. They
became the first NFL team to create a fully dedicated sensory room
inside their stadium. The room opened to the public on Aug. 4.
The
Vikings and Jaguars also opened similar rooms last month. Several more
NFL teams will be considered sensory-inclusive certified, meaning fans
will have sensory bags available if they need them. Sensory bags contain
noise-canceling headphones, fidget tools, verbal cue cards and weighted
lap pads.
"When we think about families with children with autism
coming to a game, there's barriers to re-entry, there's sensory
overload when we score a touchdown and there's pyrotechnics," said Ryan
Hammond, executive director of the Eagles Autism Challenge. "We felt the
sensory room was what we needed to be fully accessible and the idea
behind it was not to change the experience but deliver a solution if
they needed to take a break. If the sensory bag wasn't enough, you don't
have to leave the stadium. You can take a break, de-escalate, calm down
and rejoin the experience when you felt ready."
Eagles owner
Jeffrey Lurie's brother has autism, so funding autism research has been
an important initiative for him and the franchise. The Eagles Autism
Challenge, the team's signature fundraising event, has raised more than
$6 million in the first two years.
"It really was the vision of
Jeffrey Lurie," Hammond said. "He has a personal connection to autism
and he found that with the prevalence increasing and one in 59 families
affected, they need a voice and the voice being the Philadelphia Eagles
would really echo around the globe, so we launched the Eagles Autism
Challenge initially as a fundraising event.
"But this event can't
be just one day and we wanted to be authentic to this commitment. We
wanted to do more, so we spent the last year working toward the launch
of the sensory room. It's great to see it finally open to the public."
The
500-square-foot room includes several activity boards, large building
blocks and no windows. The room was designed by medical professionals to
ensure a quieter and more secure environment. The colors, lighting and
sound were carefully selected.
"We see it benefiting fans with
anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder or anyone who feels overwhelmed
in the environment," Lurie said. "As an organization we are expanding
our efforts from autism awareness to action, and our sensory room is a
physical representation of our overall commitment."
Longtime
Eagles fan Victor Ykoruk's 10-year-old twin sons, Jack and Ryan, have
been diagnosed on the autism spectrum. Ykoruk said the sensory room
makes him feel more comfortable taking them to a game.
"Philly is
known to be a raucous atmosphere, I got a little nervous," Victor Ykoruk
said before a preseason game. "But now the Eagles and CHOP together
have created a domain that is so comfortable and pleasurable and it puts
my boys at ease."
KultureCity has created more than 200 sensory
inclusive venues in three countries. As part of the certification
process, the Eagles had about 700 game-day and full-time employees
receive training on how to recognize and help fans who might be
experiencing a sensory overload situation.
"It was about being all in," Hammond said.
