Hey Athletes, Play for a Cause...At ANY Level!

One of the main goals on my podcast is to interview professional athletes about their charity work, foundations, and how they give back to the community. The concept ties together two things that I love, one is helping people and the other is sports! But it struck me this morning, why wait until you’re a professional athlete to start helping and giving back? I think that professional athletes feel the need to do it because of the spotlight that they’re in and the money that they make, however those are not things that should drive you to help others. Of course, I’ll take it, regardless of what drives you.

So, I am going to encourage athletes at every level, including college and high school, to adopt a charity that means something to them and call it your own.

Maybe it is work you do through your church, or there is a charity that is close to your heart because of someone in your family, like the American Cancer Society. Or maybe you have a friend or a friend of your family who could use your support. Imagine a high school or school district adopting something that the NFL does, like cleats for a cause, or maybe one game a year a team has each player represent the charity that is close to them, which could look like a sponsor night or a teacher appreciation type night. And in game programs, on signs and photos of players, they list the charity that they play for. There are a lot of places that show players on teams and this could be one thing that is included with the players information.

And yes, by the way, if you’re not sure what charity or non-profit organization you would want to support, hit up your boy and we can talk! ;) Many players are thinking about themselves and their own advancement, which is completely reasonable and understandable, and many sports programs within colleges and high schools are doing the same, because of a lack of funding and the need to remain competitive. But I think we would all be amazed by what comes back to us when we focus on helping others.