NORTH SMITHFIELD – The leadership behind the Xpress Football & Cheer program notes that you cannot get to two before passing one.
On Sunday, Nov. 17, one team with the organization made history, achieving the program’s first ever Super Bowl title at any age level.
With a win over Johnston at LaSalle Academy, the Junior Peewee team secured the first championship title in the program’s 29 years.
Co-founded in 1994 by James Ison and James O’Donnell, the North Smithfield-based program aimed to provide a place for local kids to play, and an organization the players could be proud of. O’Donnell took out a personal line of credit to purchase the start up equipment and uniforms for all of the players and cheerleaders. Scott Walling and Richard Desilets were also officers on the original Articles of Incorporation.
“Despite not having a dime in the bank these folks pushed forward, overcame obstacles and established an organization for all kids to enjoy and call home,” said current Xpress Coordinator Gino Olaes.
Ison, Olaes noted, was a firm believer in “doing things the right way” and continued to follow Xpress, proud that the league was still going, until his death in 2022.
“Since the establishment of Xpress, many good people have kept this organization moving forward, always trying to leave it better than when they first took over,” Olaes said. “Whether it was the parents that dug trenches for the installation of lighting at the practice field back in the late 90s, or the many others until this day that have donated their time to something bigger than them, our kids of our community.”
Olas noted that the Xpress program has a rich history of volunteerism and selflessness, and the want to make sure local children always have a place to learn and play football. In reflecting on the history that led to the recent win, he pointed to the generosity and support from local businesses, the establishing of a hardship fund so all kids could participate regardless of their socioeconomic background and the shared ideology that local kids should have the same opportunity as any other kids from any other community.
Currently, the program serves more than 250 children and their families annually, with teams for kids ages 4 to 14 hailing from across the Blackstone Valley.
“We have carried the torch, and the organization is alive and well,” Olaes said.
He noted that the impact of founders Ison and O’Donnell is not forgotten.
“This first ever Super Bowl victory belongs to them,” Olaes said. “Without their desire to do something for our children, there would be no Super Bowl to be won.”
“You will never be forgotten, you are now champions, and we will continue to take great care of what you created for our children,” he said.
To learn more about the program, follow Xpress Football & Cheer on Facebook or visit their website here.
Back in 2003, The NORTH SMITHFIELD XPRESS JV Cheerleaders won the RI PRE-TEEN CHEERLEADING CHAMPIONSHIP AS GRAND CHAMPS held at the URI’s Keaney Gym. An accomplishment never before done.