The Monday Mommy: Breaking! Not all NFL Athletes are Felons.
“The insane amount of legs these stories have gained across the world has brought so much attention to the bad apples of the NFL that we have forgotten about the amazing amount of positivity most of these athletes do for their communities.”
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With the onslaught of attention surrounding Aaron Hernandez and his life of thuggery, the media’s recent focus has been mostly comprised of negativity and legal woes when it comes to the NFL.
So far this offseason, there have been 29 known NFL arrests. The complaints have ranged from a simple drug test to possession of fire arms to full-on first degree murder. It has been a public relations nightmare for NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who fancies himself as an iron fisted, take no BS kind of leader when it comes to player conduct policies.
The individual teams of these non-law abiding athletes these have their share of headaches to deal with as well. The recent arrest of Cowboys’ defensive linemen Josh Brent for failing a second drug test would be difficult enough to handle. Throw in that he was out on bond from an intoxicated manslaughter charge and you’ve got one buried public relations department in Texas.
The New England Patriots front office figured out a way to tread water on the whole Hernandez situation. Last week they announced an Aaron Hernandez jersey buy back for all of their retail and online locations. They wanted his name off the streets and dissolved from any Patriots association so badly, that they were willing to eat a ton of cash to do so.
The insane amount of legs these stories have gained across the world has brought so much attention to the bad apples of the NFL that we have forgotten about the amazing amount of positivity most of these athletes do for their communities.
As we count down the days until training camp, I figured it would be refreshing to take a look at some of the solid, charitable work that a few of the Broncos do for the Mile High City and other parts of our country as well.
Peyton Manning
Manning’s NFL career has always been a very generous charitable one. He started the Peyback Foundation in 1999 to aid in the success of disadvantaged youth though leadership and growth opportunities for at risk children.
He is not only the financial support for the foundation but Manning is also key in the decision making aspect as well. The Peyback Foundation concentrates on a four-state region (Louisiana, Tennessee, Indiana and now Colorado).
About six weeks ago, Manning made a $581,000 donation that will be distributed to more than 90 charitable organizations within those four states. Just a month prior to that, the Broncos quarterback gifted another $500,000 to the Pat Summitt Foundation, a charity started by former perennial University of Tennessee women’s basketball coach to fund research for Alzheimer’s and dementia.
That’s over a million bucks in a two-month span.
Not only is Peyton Manning an amazing leader on the field but he has proven to be an exceptional one off of it as well.
Von Miller
The Broncos stand -out pass rusher recently had a big bash, launching his new charity Von Vision. The organization’s kickoff party took place at Texas de Brazil in mid-June and raised nearly $25,000 for his new non-profit. Miller was joined by 80 of his closest friends, family, fans and sponsors to promote and get the word out about his charity.
The goal of Von’s Vision is to provide more than 50,000 children with eye exams and corrective eyewear by the end of 2016. It is mainly aimed at the Denver and Texas area youth. According to the night’s MC Mark Johnson of 850 KOA, there are roughly 5,000 low-income first graders in Colorado that need assistance when it comes to exams and eyewear.
While this was the first official event for his charity, donations have been rolling in for a while now. Last season Ubisoft, a video game company, agreed to donate $1,000 for every hip hop sack dance he performed.
If Von Miller channels even a portion of the passion he demonstrates on the field into his charity efforts, many young children will be given the support they need when it comes to correcting vision problems most likely translating to better success in the classroom.
Wesley Woodyard
A defensive Captain and veteran linebacker, Woodyard started the 16Ways Foundation to benefit the emotional needs of at-risk youth. The foundation provides programs to help build self-esteem and self-awareness through free football camps, mentoring programs and community service among other things.
The thought process behind the foundation is that at-risk youths can require more reassurance that their lives matter just as much as the rest of the community so that they can go on to excel both academically and socially to become the best members of society as possible.
One of the big fundraisers for 16Ways this year was a dinner at Sullivan’s Steakhouse in Downtown Denver. Woodyard recruited about a dozen of his Bronco teammates to serve as waiters for the event with the proceeds all going to the foundation.
During the holidays, Woodyard is involved in an annual Toy Drive to benefit his 16Ways Foundation as well. Attendees of the event have a chance to mix, mingle and bid on silent auction items donated by Woodyard and some of his fellow Bronco teammates. The toys are donated to GIVE Denver and the proceeds benefit the 16Ways Foundation.
There is little doubt that many of our Denver Broncos are solid member s of the community and are making a difference in the lives of Coloradans daily. With the job comes an unwritten responsibility to better their communities and use their natural talent and success to help those less fortunate.
Sadly, many guys around the league don’t really get the memo. Hopefully these recent events shed enough of a negative light on the ugly side of being a thug that young up and coming NFL athletes steer away from that life.
With training camp around the corner, let’s hope that the 2013 Bronco squad can stay out of trouble, enjoy the rest of the summer and turn their focus to that victory parade in February we all have our spot picked out for.
