It is easy to become depressed or cynical about things in the world today. But there are always inspirational rays of hope if you are willing to look for them.
Recently, I discovered two stories of generosity which I think will inspire you this Christmas season.
A Wonderful Tradition Is Born
In 2017, the University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital opened. It sits just adjacent to the school’s football stadium. During games, the hospital’s patients and their families would begin watching the action from their windows. In response, a beautiful tradition was born.
At the end of the first quarter, the players and 70,000 people in attendance would focus their attention away from the game and onto the hospital’s children and begin waving to them. Few things are as heartwarming as shown in the video below:
Is NIL Destroying College Sports?
On December 17th, the team’s center Tyler Linderbaum took it a step farther. He donated his $30,000 Name Image Likeness (NIL) earnings to the children’s hospital. See below:
Iowa center Tyler Linderbaum donates $30,000 from his NIL earnings to the Iowa children’s hospital. Wow. The value of NIL comes in many forms. https://t.co/uQtROXrM6H
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) December 19, 2021
Many people think NIL will ruin college sports. No doubt, it will certainly change it. But similar to things like the internet, social media, and money, college athletes can now use their earnings for good or for bad. Linderbaum provides an example of what can happen when you combine a generous spirit with NIL earnings. It can do a lot of good in the world.
The Best Fan Base In The World
Second story. Which sports team, regardless of where it is in the world, has the best fan base? Could it be the Green Bay Packers? Pittsburgh Steelers? New York Yankees? Boston Red Sox? Auburn or Alabama? Any number of European or Brazilian soccer teams? How about the All Blacks rugby team?
There are dozens of passionate fan bases across the globe but fans of the Buffalo Bills, known as the Bills Mafia, recently made a compelling case for why they should be at the top of the list.
A Season-Ending Injury
Tre’Davious White is a 5th year cornerback for the team. The former first-round pick out of LSU is a two-time All-Pro and tied for the league lead in interceptions in 2019. He is not only one of the team’s best players, but one of the best in the NFL.
On November 25th in a game against the New Orleans Saints, White suffered a season-ending knee injury. It was then the Bills Mafia stepped up.
An Extraordinary Act Of Generosity
White’s uniform number is 27. A group of Bills’ fans began making $27 donations to the Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana in his honor. Think about that, Shreveport, La, the food bank’s location, is 1,260 miles from Buffalo, NY. The level of insight, care, compassion, creativity, and generosity of this fan base is extraordinary!
So what were the results?
As of December 1st, over $108,000 had been received!!!
The food bank’s executive director Martha Marak said, “We appreciate Tre’Davious White’s generosity and all he gives back to our community. We are so honored to have the support from the Bills Mafia Babes. These donations come at a time when food insecurity for our neighbors is high and our food inventory is low. With the food bank’s resources, we will turn every $1 donated into $10 in food value and every $27 that is donated allows us to provide food for 100 meals. As it stands currently, the donations will provide $1,083,590 worth of food value – a number we are so grateful for. We look forward to continuing the fight to end hunger together.”
The following was White’s response:
There are a lot of wonderful fan bases throughout the world. Until I hear a story which tops this act of generosity, I’m going with the Bills Mafia as the most passionate…. and most generous fan base in the world.
I hope these stories inspired you this Christmas season and maybe, just maybe, perhaps inspired you to be a little more generous as well.
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