Tag: community service

Chiefs WR Rashee Rice distributes food and water in the community

#Chiefs WR Rashee Rice distributes food and water in the community | @EdEastonJr

The Kansas City Chiefs continue to work hard during OTAs, as players voluntarily work out in preparation for the new season. Rashee Rice is among the many players getting extra work during the offseason while dealing with a tumultuous few months since Super Bowl LVIII.

Rice made another offseason decision this week. He gave back to the local community by distributing free pizza and water. The kind gesture was filmed and posted on his Instagram account, supporting those in need before summer.

“It’s your boy Double R.. We’re out here giving out some water and some pizza in the summertime,” said Rice in the video. “Everybody’s got to eat, you know what I’m saying, it’s great weather. Let’s do it.”

https://www.instagram.com/doub11e_r/reel/C7hw1LpOm82/?hl=en

Rice is still facing the fallout from his involvement in the six-car accident on March 30 in Dallas that left at least one person injured. According to Dallas police, he faces eight felony charges — six for a collision involving bodily injury, one for a collision involving serious bodily injury, and another for aggravated assault. He is potentially avoiding any charges stemming from a nightclub incident last month, according to a report from ESPN.

The second-year receiver shows humility following the accident as he tries to move forward in his career and life.

Chiefs DL Chris Jones seen serving hamburgers, community

Chris Jones won’t play for the #Chiefs on Thursday, but he still made a point to get involved in the Kansas City community this week.

Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones didn’t seem concerned about his team’s Week 1 matchup against the Detroit Lions when he was seen serving hamburgers to families at the Ronald McDonald house on Wednesday.

Despite being under contract with Kansas City through the end of the 2023 season, Jones hasn’t seen fit to end his prolonged holdout while he seeks a raise in pay and significant guarantees on his next contract.

While fans will certainly be happy to see him doing some kind of work during his holdout, this likely wasn’t what they were hoping to see Jones do this week. Community service is a key part of the Chiefs’ brand, and the star defensive lineman is certainly noble for playing his part in a good cause.

Jones won’t see the field for Kansas City on Thursday, but it was good to see him lifting hamburgers and families who needed a pick-me-up ahead of the highly anticipated primetime matchup.

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Watch: Notre Dame’s Jaden Mickey gives back to California community

Jaden is making the Irish proud

For many [autotag]Notre Dame[/autotag] athletes, it’s not just about what you can accomplish on the field, it’s off the field as well.

Second-year cornerback [autotag]Jaden Mickey[/autotag] does exactly that. He’s coming off a season where he was able to earn his way onto the field, registering 9 tackles, with expectations growing about his on-field success especially after an interception during the Blue and Gold game.

Off the field Mickey is all about giving back to his community, especially home in Eastvale, California. Over the summer, Mickey has hosted a youth football camp at his high school and even wrote a book titled: The Win Isn’t Always On the Scoreboard.

Mickey giving back to the community caught the eyes of Good Day LA and they did a feature on him giving back to the community. Take a look below at the clip about his off the field community work.

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Chiefs S Justin Reid makes donation to Kansas City Public Schools STEM, Robotics programs

#Chiefs S Justin Reid made a significant contribution to the education of teens in the Kansas City area on Monday. | from @TheJohnDillon

Kansas City Chiefs safety Justin Reid cemented himself as a key part of his team’s defense last season and is proving to be an equally crucial member of the community after making a significant donation to a local school on Monday.

Reid’s foundation, JReid Indeed, invested significantly in the STEM and engineering departments at Kansas City Public Schools, donating $15,000 to their robotics team as part of an outreach effort. A Standford graduate, Reid is known to be a firm believer in the value of education and seems poised to inspire a new generation of thinkers with this latest good deed in the Kansas City area.

“Technology is the game changer for our students to succeed,” Reid said in a statement, via KSHB. “Everyday technology is changing the future and it is changing how we live. I want to give children who look like me a fighting chance to have a better education, and to compete in life. That’s my ultimate goal.”

During his appearance at KC Central High School, Reid posed for pictures with the promotional check provided by his foundation and members of the robotics team who stand to benefit greatly from this kind gesture. The mission of his foundation is as follows:

 JReid InDeed is a charitable organization founded by Justin Reid that focuses on equipping and funding disadvantaged youth and communities through interactive programs, community engagement, and technology access. The foundation focuses on children in underserved communities of Houston, Baton Rouge, and Kansas City. 

Heading into his second year with the Chiefs in 2023, Reid is sure to become a fan-favorite in Kansas City’s secondary as he further ingrains himself both in his community and on the gridiron.

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Cowboys nominate Jaylon Smith for Walter Payton Man of the Year honor

The linebacker will wear a special helmet decal marking the honor, recognizing his work empowering minority entrepreneurship initiatives.

Cowboys fans have had a love/hate relationship with linebacker Jaylon Smith in 2020, often making him the target of their frustrations with a defense that seems to often lack hustle and the poster boy for an organization that seems to overpay some players before they’ve proven their long-term worth.

Those criticisms deserve to be set aside for a day at least. Smith was honored by the league Thursday for his community service activities off the field when he was named the Cowboys’ nominee for the 2020 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.

Always one of the team’s most active participants in local community outreach efforts, Smith has personally spearheaded initiatives to encourage minority entrepreneurship. He founded the Minority Entrepreneurship Institute to help open doors for others to start businesses and succeed financially.

From the Cowboys official website:

“Smith has pledged $2.5 million over 10 years to spur MEI investments and is adding co-investors across the country who share in his beliefs. His hope is that minority entrepreneurs will be the game-changers who can make a changing economy come to life.”

“Jaylon exemplifies every quality that this award celebrates,” Cowboys executive vice president and chief brand officer Charlotte Jones Anderson said in a statement. “He has a light that he wants to share and shine on others that is rare. We are excited to see what more he can accomplish through his work with minority entrepreneurs and the many other endeavors that he supports.”

Ezekiel Elliott, Tony Pollard, and Rico Dowdle were among the first Cowboys players who took to social media to congratulate their teammate.

A player from each team in the league was nominated; notables include Cleveland’s Myles Garrett, Kansas City’s Travis Kelce, Seattle’s Russell Wilson, and Miami’s Byron Jones, the former Cowboys cornerback.

The nominations were announced on Good Morning Football.

Smith and the 31 other nominees will wear a special helmet decal for the rest of the season signifying the honor. All will see their work celebrated during the week leading up to Super Bowl LV and have a $40,000 donation made to the charity of their choosing. The award’s winner will be revealed during the NFL Honors event, with a $250,000 donation made. That winner will also wear a jersey patch for the remainder of his playing career.

Several Cowboys have won the NFL Man of the Year award: Roger Staubach in 1978, Troy Aikman in 1997, and Jason Witten in 2012. The award was re-named for Payton shortly after his death in 1999; the Bears running back had won it himself in 1977.

Nationwide, the award’s corporate sponsor, is encouraging fans to vote for their favorite nominee on Twitter by using the hashtag #WPMOYChallenge followed by the player’s last name. The player tagged most between December 10 and January 17 will receive a $25,000 contribution to their charity of choice; second- and third-place finishers will receive $10,000 and $5,000 donations, respectively.

Congratulations- and a celebratory swipe- to Jaylon Smith on being nominated for the NFL’s most prestigious accolade.

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Ezekiel Elliott, DeMarcus Lawrence doing part to support COVID-19 relief efforts

Two of the Cowboys’ biggest stars are stepping up with efforts aimed at helping the global fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

The coronavirus pandemic is affecting everyone on the planet. The vast majority of the populace is rendered fairly helpless, able to do little more to help the global cause than staying at home, washing their hands, and trying to stop the spread.

A select few are in a position to do more. Two of the Cowboys’ biggest stars are stepping up and using their piece of the celebrity spotlight to make a difference outside their homes. Running back Ezekiel Elliott and edge rusher DeMarcus Lawrence have both increased their efforts to help tackle this common opponent with campaigns shared on social media.

Elliott posted to Instagram on Thursday to announce an initiative to benefit the North Texas Food Bank. Elliott will be releasing new merchandise to fans, with 100% of the proceeds going to help feed locals in need during this uncertain time. It’s a perfect fit for the player whose “Feed Me” in-game pantomime has become a rallying cheer for Cowboys fans. Centre, a Metroplex retail company, will be matching whatever Elliott raises through the sales.

Lawrence took a hands-on approach with a family art project to personally show their appreciation for neighborhood first responders and healthcare workers.

Fans are invited to construct similar messages of gratitude in their front yards, windows, porches and home exteriors so that their local frontline heroes can see and feel the enormous impact they are making in their communities every day.

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Travis Frederick again nominated for Walter Payton Man of the Year

The Dallas center will wear the special helmet decal for a second time and look to join teammate Jason Witten as a winner of the award.

The Dallas Cowboys have announced that center Travis Frederick is the team’s 2019 Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee.

Each of the 32 teams across the league selects its own Man of the Year, with each nominee put forward to win the national award, presented by Nationwide. The prestigious award honors an NFL player “for outstanding community service activities off the field, as well as excellence on the field,” according to a press release from the league Thursday morning that includes the names of all 32 current nominees.

“Every day, in cities and towns across America, NFL players give of themselves to make our communities better. This year, as we celebrate our 100th season and the 50th year of the Walter Payton NFL Man of Year Award, NFL players have continued to raise the bar on community engagement and impact,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “The 32 nominees for this year’s award are the best of the best and truly embody the spirit of Walter and his legacy of leaving the world better than he found it.”

First established in 1970, the national award was renamed in 1999 after the late Hall of Fame Chicago Bears running back Walter Payton.

Frederick, in his seventh season out of Wisconsin, has been one of the league’s top offensive linemen for his entire career, earning four Pro Bowl appearances. He has also been extremely active on the community service front, giving his time and energy to causes like The Salvation Army and Make-a-Wish Foundation of North Texas. He is a frequent visitor to Dallas area hospitals and schools, and his Blocking Out Hunger Foundation is making a huge impact combating childhood hunger in and around the Metroplex.

A first-round draft pick in 2013, Frederick was previously named the team’s Man of the Year nominee in 2017 as well. He spent the entire 2018 season making a recovery from Guillain-Barre Syndrome and returned to the field in 2019.

Frederick and the 31 other current nominees will wear a special helmet decal beginning with this week’s games and continuing through the end of the season. Winners of the award- like Jason Witten in 2012- get a Man of the Year patch that they wear on their jersey for the duration of their playing career.

Cowboys fans can help support Frederick’s chosen cause by voting on Twitter using a special hashtag. The nominee whose hashtag is used the most between December 12 and January 12 will receive a $25,000 contribution to their charity of choice; the second- and third-place finishers get lesser donations made in their name.

The 2019 Walter Payton Man of the Year will be announced during NFL Honors, the league’s awards special that airs the night before the Super Bowl. This year’s announcement will take place on February 1 in downtown Miami.