Sports Education Fund helps raise awareness of head injuries

Dom Colosimo was at a North Allegheny football team practice when a blindside hit left him feeling dizzy, nauseous and sensitive to light.

Cheryl Rosato was in the stands enjoying her son's football game when an injury forced him to the sideline. She watched as Scott Linkowski, a junior on the Grove City College football team, was left disoriented and wobbling.

Ingomar Middle School physical education teacher and basketball coach Margo Hinton has no problem holding students or players out of competition if they have suffered even a slight head injury.

Each of these people recognizes the importance of immediate treatment for someone with a head injury. They have the efforts of the Eric Pelly Sports Education Fund to thank for that.

While playing for the Pittsburgh Harlequins rugby team, multisport athlete Eric Pelly suffered a severe concussion. Ten days later, on Oct. 10, 2006, Pelly, who then was a senior at North Allegheny Senior High School, collapsed as he was about to eat dinner with his family and eventually died from complications related to a swollen and herniated brain. He was 18.

The school had a fundraising basketball game in his honor the following spring. Since then, Pelly's mother, Joan Pelly, and the Eric Pelly Sports Education Fund have been helping raise awareness about the danger of head injuries.

“I do this because I don't want anyone to have to go through what I have gone through,” said Pelly, of McCandless.

The fund's annual 3-on-3 basketball tournament for those in the ninth grade and up is at 6 p.m. June 5 at North Allegheny Senior High School in McCandless. The event also will feature shooting competitions, an auction, the announcement of the Eric Pelly Scholarship winner and a presentation by guest speaker Kerry Goulet of www.stopconcussions.com. Spectators are encouraged to attend to cheer for the teams.

A second event added this year is a concert fundraiser featuring the Corned Beef & Curry Band at 7:30 p.m. May 31 — Eric Pelly's birthday — at Sunny Jim's Tavern in Ohio Township. That event also includes a raffle and a silent auction. Tickets are $30 and include a prime rib or chicken Marsala dinner and a drink.

“It's a good way to take our mind off it being Eric's birthday and to do something good,” Joan Pelly said.

Because the basketball tournament is geared toward delivering the message of concussion awareness to young athletes and their parents, organizers wanted to add a more social event to the calendar.

“We wanted something fun for the adults,” Joan Pelly said.

The fund's objective is to raise awareness about the dangers of head injuries, especially concussions. Colosimo, 19, of Franklin Park, who was at the first fundraiser and will play in the 3-on-3 tournament this year, learned firsthand how important the message is.

“I definitely think that I survived something that could have been a life-changing event had I just sucked it up and got back in there,” the accounting major at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh said.

Hinton said the guest speakers at past fundraisers helped her better understand the importance of seeking treatment. She knows all too well that young players will try to get back in the game without realizing they may be seriously hurt.

“As they say, ‘When in doubt, sit them out,'” said Hinton, of Pittsburgh's Troy Hill neighborhood.

Rosato, a Wexford resident, is a longtime friend of Joan Pelly's who marvels at the way she has taken a personal tragedy and used it to benefit others.

“She has a purpose from all of this,” Rosato said.

“She's saving lives.”

Ed Phillipps is a freelance writer for Trib Total Media.