ITEM ONE:

EAGLES LAND A PARK

Minicamp was over. Time to pick up a shovel and go to work. That was the scene in Philadelphia recently when 31 Philadelphia Eagles ended a four-day minicamp – and went directly to work constructing a playground for city children. For the second consecutive year, the Eagles Youth Partnership, the team’s charitable wing, spearheaded a drive with city recreational organizations to convert useless land into a vibrant playground. The target this year was Mifflin Square Park, a barren cement area six blocks from the Eagles’ Veterans Stadium home. With a day’s hard labor from the Eagles players, owner JEFFREY LURIE, front office staff and students from five area schools, a colorful park arose by nightfall, to be renamed "Eagles Unity Playground." Playground equipment and safety matting was purchased through a $75,000 grant from the Eagles Youth Partnership. "I always had somewhere nice to play when I was a kid," said Eagles quarterback BOBBY HOYING. "This is important, because it’s for kids."

ITEM TWO:

BOOMER TO IGNITE JULY 4TH FOOTBALL FIREWORKS

He may be retired from the NFL – and now a Monday Night Football analyst for ABC-TV – but BOOMER ESIASON has not forgotten his New York high school football roots. And to kick off the July 4th weekend, Esiason will stage his fourth annual New York high school all-star game at Hofstra University Stadium next Friday (July 3), pitting stellar players from Long Island against the best players from the five boroughs of New York City. The "Outback Steakhouse Empire Challenge" will benefit the Boomer Esiason Foundation and its fight against cystic fibrosis, the Gunnar H. Esiason Scholarship Fund at Hofstra, and New York area youth football. Esiason’s seven-year-old son GUNNAR suffers from cystic fibrosis. Boomer will be an honorary captain along with other New York-bred NFLers such as MARCO BATTAGLIA, JUMBO ELLIOTT, RONNIE HARMON, SCOTT MERSEREAU, ROB MOORE, and VINNY TESTAVERDE, the New York Jets new quarterback. The NFL will sponsor an NFL Flag Football halftime demonstration and offer information on signing up for local flag leagues and how leagues can be started. After all the football fireworks will be the other kind, provided by the famous Grucci family.

ITEM THREE:

The Baltimore Ravens chose their nickname from one of their city’s most recognized symbols. This summer, the creator of that symbol, Baltimore-native EDGAR ALLEN POE -- considered to be one of America’s greatest poets, short-story writers and literary critics -- would be proud of his city’s football team. The Ravens have launched "Team Read ’98," a program that offers city children the chance to win Ravens’ prizes for reading accomplishments during the summer. Held in conjunction with Baltimore’s Enoch Pratt Free Library, youngsters will be awarded a Ravens player card bookmark for every book they complete from a selected list. The bookmark includes a player’s statistics and several childhood reading preferences. For instance, linebacker PETER BOULWARE’s favorite book was Dr. Seuss’ "Green Eggs and Ham." The Ravens’ program fits perfectly with Baltimore’s city slogan: "Baltimore: The City That Reads."