Surrounded by students at Middletown High School, Gov. Markell signs Senate Bill 205 into law.  Among the legislators present for Monday's signing ceremony were State Sens. Bethany Hall-Long, Cathy Cloutier & Bryan Townsend and State Reps. Dave Wilson & Mike Ramone (in photo, far right). All five legislators sponsored or co-sponsored the new statute. PHOTO COURTESY OF GOVERNOR MARKELL'S OFFICE

New Law Intended to Save the Lives of Student Athletes

Middletown High School was used as the appropriate venue for the enactment of a new law Monday aimed at curtailing the occurrence of sudden cardiac arrest in student athletes.

Senate Bill 205 should help to identify at-risk students who participate in youth sports and raise awareness among coaches and administrators.  

The new law requires the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association to develop rules for schools to deal with awareness, recognition, and management of sudden cardiac arrest in student-athletes.  The law mandates that schools provide coaches and officials with information on sudden cardiac arrest.

Additionally, students and their families will need to sign a sudden cardiac arrest information sheet; athletes will answer questions about heart history before they participate in sports activities; and schools will ensure all head coaches undergo CPR certification.

Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death for student athletes participating in practices and games.

"With the training and information this law requires, we're going to give young athletes a better chance of surviving, if they should suffer a sudden, unexpected cardiac incident while they're on the field," said Sen. Bethany Hall-Long, D-Middletown, the bill's prime sponsor.

"As a person who has dedicated his entire adult life to running health and fitness clubs and sports programs for our young athletes, I am very proud to have helped champion this important legislation," said Rep. Mike Ramone, R-Pike Creek South, the bill's lead sponsor in the House of Representatives.  "I believe that we are making a life-saving commitment to our student athletes and their families by enacting this bill."

The new law is known as the Grace Firestone Act, in recognition of a former three-sport star at Tower Hill.  Grace, who attended the bill signing, is one of the rare survivors of sudden cardiac arrest.

Legislative Hall Gets an Exterior Makeover 

The first observance of Labor Day was likely on Sept. 5, 1882, when some 10,000 workers assembled in New York City for a parade. 

That celebration inspired similar events across the country, and by 1894 more than half the states were observing a "working men's holiday" of some type. 

Later that year, with Congress passing legislation and President Grover Cleveland signing the bill on June 29, the first Monday in September was designated "Labor Day." 

Here is a comparison, courtesy of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, illustrating how the nature of the American work force has changed over the last century: