It was back in August when Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison caused a bit of a stir when he instructed his sons to give back their participation awards.

Harrison, like many people, felt that a trophy should be earned and not received as a token of trying hard. At the time, I wrote a blog sharing my thoughts on the issue of participation trophies.

SEE ALSO: Do participation trophies have a role in youth sports?

As I wrote then, I don’t have a problem with participation trophies. Both of my sons have them in their rooms, and I’ve told them to be proud of them because I think they earned them from hard work, dedication and commitment.

I bring this up again five months later because I’m curious to see how that story affected the thinking of other parents.

In a few weeks, my son’s football program will have its annual awards night, and I’m fascinated to see how many parents bring their kids that evening. In the past few weeks, I’ve come across a few parents, either at school or around town, and the reaction seems to be mixed between those coming and those who are not.

As a parent, I always enjoy that evening.

I enjoy watching my son get his trophy because he works hard, shows up for just about every practice and loves to play. Nobody can ever tell me that Bradley doesn’t deserve that trophy. He earned it. As I wrote in my initial story on this subject, maybe there should be some parameters placed on giving out the awards, but I know my son deserves his.

Another reason I enjoy that night is that it gives Bradley and the other players a chance to see teammates again. It’s been a couple of months since the end of the season, and the kids attend multiple school districts. It’s always nice to see the players interact with each other, reflect on the season and look ahead to next season.

And finally, it’s a great opportunity for the parents to catch up with each other. Everyone has a busy schedule, so it’s nice to chat it up with the other parents and talk football. Here in New York, there will be plenty for the parents to talk about, including what’s happening with the program as well as the conclusion to the Jets’ and Giants’ seasons.

For the Levittown Red Devils, awards night is not only about the kids getting their participation trophies, it’s also a night for some of the kids to receive special trophies for performance, dedication and achievement. In addition, the cheerleaders, who are a big part of our program, receive their trophies, and all of the girls deserve the recognition.

Everyone will have his or her own opinion on this topic. But for me, the kids worked hard all season, and awards night is an event where everyone can have a good time and close the book on 2015.

With all due respect to James Harrison and any other parents that share his views, is it really a good idea to do the thinking for the kids? They know the deal. They know the difference between a participation trophy and a so-called “real” trophy.

Let the kids have their night. They earned it.

Peter Schwartz is an anchor and reporter for the CBS Sports Radio Network. He also writes a CBS New York sports blog athttp://newyork.cbslocal.com/tag/peter-schwartz/. You can follow him on Twitter @pschwartzcbsfan. Peter’s son Bradley plays for the Levittown Red Devils of the Nassau Suffolk Football League on Long Island in New York. His son Jared cheers on Bradley and then Bradley returns the favor when Jared is playing soccer.