Using Your Influence

Stories of athletes who helped people in need.

Story: How professional athletes are using their influence to help individuals and communities

Do professional athletes really care about other people? How can athletes use their influence to help other people around the world? In this post, I want to give two quick examples of athletes who have taken time out of their day and money out of their pocket in order to serve other people.

Tony Romo

The Bible says in Acts 20:35 that “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Well, Tony Romo got to experience this blessing in 2008. Tony Romo was an NFL Quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys from 2003 to 2016. In 2008, Romo and his Cowboys beat the Cleveland Browns 27 to 10 in their season opener. However, Romo had picked up a minor injury in the game when linebacker Willie McGinest hit him in the chin with his helmet. Romo needed 13 stitches to close the gash.

After the game

After the game, Romo cleaned up and began the drive home. However, he noticed a car pulled off to the side of the road. The owners of the car had a flat tire and looked like they needed help. Romo pulled over to see what he could do.

“It is more blessed to give than to receive”

– Acts 20:35 –

Romo helped the man and his wife to patch their tire and to pump it up. It was a simple act of kindness, but Romo had demonstrated that athletes have hearts too. Athletes are not above helping people. Romo says, “You may have seen me in such places as your local market in a tabloid.” Who knows how many other famous athletes you have seen help someone else without you ever recognizing who they were.

Lamarr Woodley

Lamarr Woodley was an NFL linebacker for 8 years and he spent the majority of those years playing for the Pittsburg Steelers. Woodley was raised in the town of Saginaw, Michigan. He started his football career in high school where he was able to help his football team win the DII State Championship. However, after he was drafted in 2007, a person might think that Woodley was too distracted to remember his home town. Well, this story says otherwise . . .

His alma mater needed financial help

In 2012, Lamarr Woodley heard that his high school alma mater was struggling financially. Because they needed money, the school was being forced to charge youths who wanted to play sports $75 dollars in order to play or else they might have to close down the sports department. The cost was too much for many families to afford. Therefore, the children of those families could not play athletics. Imagine the sadness of one of those children who no longer was allowed to play sports.

The decision to help

Woodley hadn’t forgotten where he came from and he wanted to help. Working with his foundation, Woodley donated $60,000 dollars to the entire Saginaw Public High School System to cover the costs for the 2012 – 2013 school year.

In an interview with the Pittsburg Gazette later that week, Woodley said, “For kids to lose out on an opportunity to maybe earn a scholarship or learn about playing team ball … to miss out on that because your family can’t afford $75 was going to be tough . . . I wasn’t going to sit back and allow that to happen.” Woodley remembers the effect and opportunities that athletics have given him and he wants to make sure that others will have the same opportunity.

“I wasn’t going to sit back and allow that to happen.”

– Lamarr Woodley –

Are you giving back?

If you are younger, you may say, “I’m not really able to give back to my community.” However, if you are older, you may say, “I’m not in a good financial position” or “I do not know where to begin.” The fact is, all of us should be ready and willing to give back to those who have sacrificed for us: parents, teachers, soldiers, siblings, mentors, etc . . . Furthermore, all of us can give back in some way: large or small.

How can I give back?

A younger person can give back to his or her community by simply doing the little things like doing the dishes for mom, cleaning his or her room, cutting the lawn for their elderly neighbor, and maybe even volunteering for a project in the community.

On the other hand, an older person can also give back to his or her community. You can do this in a plethora of ways, including: volunteering, helping when God puts someone with a need in your life, donating to good causes, or simply thanking your Dad and Mom for raising you. We all can and should help in some way.

Famous basketball coach John Wooden once said, “Be true to yourself, help others . . . make friendship a fine art, drink deeply from good books – especially the Bible . . . give thanks for your blessings and pray for guidance every day.” This man is arguably the most famous and successful Basketball coach of all time and he says to “help others” and to “drink deeply” from the “Bible” specifically.

Don’t be “too cool” to help others

Many people (especially younger people) who I meet today will act like they are “too cool” to help others. Please don’t be that kind of person. Remember that helping others not only gives a person a feeling of fulfillment, but helping others also helps us to remember how we got to where we are. Most of us had help along the way. Lamarr Woodley and Tony Romo didn’t think that they were too important to help others! I want to encourage you that you don’t have to be rich and you don’t have to be popular. All that you have to do is to be thankful and give back!

“Be true to yourself, help others, make each day your masterpiece, make friendship a fine art, drink deeply from good books – especially the Bible, build a shelter against a rainy day, give thanks for your blessings and pray for guidance every day.”

– John Wooden –