VIDEO: Parsippany Hills' opener more than just a football game

TEAMSean will be hosting a fundraiser for National Childhood Cancer Awareness month at Parsippany Hills' home opener against West Morris on Saturday. Sean Ries, a 7-year-old from Mount Tabor, has had three surgeries in two years for a dysembryoplastic neuroepithelial tumor in his brain -- most recently in June.

Ries, a second grader, still plays for the Little Vikings flag football team. The entire organization, first through eighth graders, and much of the Morris County Youth Football League will wear something gold on the field for every game in September.

About 13,500 children are diagnosed with cancer in the United States every year. One out of five -- more than 3,000 -- will die by age 8, and three out of five will suffer from long-term or late-onset side effects as a result of their treatment. Sean's long-term prognosis is good, but his particular tumor is so rare, there are no statistics.

Proceeds from the TEAMSean Gold Out go to the MCYFL Charities, which provides financial support to families in the league who have a child battling a life-threatening illness. The foundation has given more than $60,000 to eight families, including the Reis, since its founding in 2009.

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