Supporting a cause that’s near and dear to their hearts.
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The Miami Dolphins hit the field one last time on Thursday to close out their mandatory team minicamp. Following this session, the players and coaches will take a well-earned break from the game until training camp in July.
The time away will give players a chance to rest, recover and even return to their hometowns to do what all Dolphins do – support causes and fundraise for charitable endeavors. Philanthropy of all forms is an area in which the Dolphins are a first-class organization. Supporting the community has been a cornerstone of this franchise ever since legendary head coach Don Shula came to Miami in 1970.
The work throughout history that this team has done off the field is more impressive than the successes they’ve had on the field. This is, of course, a team with a pair of championships and a perfect season included.
Whether it’s raising money for organizations within South Florida, running food drives or supporting the Dolphins Challenge Cancer initiative, the players and employees continue to go above and beyond the call of duty.
Several players have shown consistency in their off-field work like Jaelan Phillips, Tyreek Hill and Emmanuel Ogbah to name a few. Plenty of Dolphins have been extremely charitable to help support causes close to them, one being linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel.
During the time away from the practice field, Van Ginkel and his wife, Samantha, will head back to their home state of Iowa, where, this Saturday, June 10, they’ve organized a local event in partnership with Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation. The ALSF funds impactful research, raising awareness, supporting families and empowering everyone to help cure childhood cancer.
Childhood cancer has been something the Van Ginkels have been passionate about as well as combating and raising awareness and money for, as, tragically, Andrew lost his sister to the disease when she was just nine years old. Samantha has also been a staunch supporter of battling this plague and started a Love Your Melon Campus Crew back in college, another organization to fight childhood cancer.
The Van Ginkels will host their event at the Rock Valley Sports Complex, and you don’t have to necessarily be in-state to support “Andrew Van Ginkel’s Lemonade Stand.” 100% of all proceeds will help fight childhood cancer, and this adds to the list of supportive endeavors made by the couple within the community.
They were among several Dolphin players and employees to contribute to a GoFundMe campaign recently set up to honor and support the family of Eric Carmona. Carmona tragically passed away in an accident and the campaign is nearly at $77,000 to support his wife and four children.
The linebacker has excelled on the field as well, earning an orange practice jersey last week, and even worked as an inside linebacker in organized team activities to add to his usual outside work.
Van Ginkel was a free agent in the offseason, but even while courted by half a dozen other teams, he remained a Dolphin and should be a key piece to Vic Fangio’s defense.
You, as well, can contribute to the Van Ginkels ALSF efforts as well as the Eric Carmona GoFundMe.
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