Coming Back Stronger (20 page)
I am very proud of my faith. Being a Christian is who I am. I read the Word of God in the Bible every day, and I do my best to live out the teachings found inside. On a daily basis I ask God to show me his will and allow me to see the purposes he has for my life. Then I try to carry out those purposes in all I do. I also strive to live with a healthy fear of God. But don’t take this the wrong way. In my view, fearing God means you have so much love and respect for him that you don’t want to let him down and you would do anything to serve him. I believe that when you fear God, you don’t need to fear anything else—no man, no task, no obstacle or challenge. Because when God is with you, you can accomplish anything and overcome any obstacles.
God has made every person unique, and although we are all different, he created each of us with the ability to achieve greatness. Of course, there are bumps along the way, and we will all face our share of adversity. This is what shapes us as people and as Christians and allows us to move forward stronger than we were before, ready to reach heights we never thought possible. Our faith is a constant work in progress, and the journey of a Christian is never finished on this earth. We always need to be working toward strengthening our bond with the Lord and improving our relationships with others.
The challenge of a Christian athlete is to live the life that we preach and understand that we have been given a platform to make a positive impact in the lives of many people, especially kids. What bugs me more than anything else is seeing guys profess their faith on game day with a point to the sky while the cameras are rolling and then walk out of the locker room into a life of sin. I’m not saying we never make mistakes. We are all human, and therefore we are all sinners. Nobody is perfect. The Lord knows I have committed my fair share of sins and made some stupid decisions. But the key is to learn from those mistakes and commit to ourselves and to God that we will clean up our lives where necessary. As athletes, we live in an age of media where our every move is documented and scrutinized, and sometimes we feel like certain things we say or do are misconstrued or taken out of context. The national media usually focuses on athletes who make poor decisions, and therefore that becomes the general perception about athletes. Unfortunately the status quo does not sell papers, but drama and controversy do. As athletes, we must continue to fight that perception and show fans that the reality is different—that most of us take great responsibility in representing our communities and organizations the best we can. Football is one of those sports that has the ability to transcend just being a game or a form of entertainment to become a source of hope and pride for so many fans. We recognize this and constantly find ways to connect with those who make this game great—the fans.
I believe that everybody deserves to have his or her own relationship with God. Yes, there are fundamental beliefs and values that are consistent for all Christians. But when it comes to our own individual walks with God, they are specific to each person. While I am not afraid to talk about my faith, I tend to be less outspoken than others might be. I think it’s great for other people to be more vocal—I love to see enthusiastic Christians who have the power of the Lord running through them. But that’s just not my personality.
I want people to take Christ seriously, so I try not to treat him flippantly by throwing around some catchphrase or code words that only Christians will understand. I want people to see that my faith is authentic—not only in my words but also in the way I live my life. There are a lot of skeptics out there who get disillusioned when they see people who talk about God but don’t have the actions to back it up. My desire is that people will see me as a man of God who is genuinely trying to live out my faith with my wife, my son, my team, and the community I live and serve in. I also hope those who don’t know Christ will be able to look at the way Christian athletes carry themselves and see that they are making their lives define the game, rather than letting the game define their lives.
To Whom Much Is Given . . .
One of the guiding principles in my life is from a parable of Jesus: “To whom much is given . . . much will be required.” In other words, if you have been blessed, it’s your responsibility to bless others with what you’ve been given. God hasn’t given those gifts just for your own good but for the good of others as well. Early in my football career I recognized the need to give back to the community. I see it as my responsibility, but also my privilege, to be generous with what God has entrusted to me.
Over the years I’ve seen players become as passionate about their charity work as they are about football, and the common denominator seems to be that they have suffered through something difficult or experienced some loss in their own lives. One of my mentors and friends, Doug Flutie, is that type of guy. His son, Doug Jr., has autism, and Doug has made it his mission to raise awareness about the disorder and fund research to help those affected by it.
For a long time Brittany and I had a desire to channel our giving and fund-raising to specific projects that would make a difference in people’s lives. So in 2003, after a lot of thought and prayer, we established the Brees Dream Foundation, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charity.
We came up with the concept and name for the Brees Dream Foundation on our honeymoon. It was our joint vision, but really it was Brittany’s passion that ensured it came to fruition. In a way, we think of it as our first baby. Our foundation is personal to us not only because of the people who inspired it but because it was our dream, our way to give back after all the blessings we have been given.
Our original mission for the foundation was to advance cancer research projects and improve the quality of life for patients with cancer, especially children. Part of the inspiration for this idea came from Brittany’s aunt Judith Zopp. She and Brittany were very close, and when Brittany was in college, Aunt Judie, as Brit called her, went through several stages of treatment for both lung cancer and brain cancer. We watched her struggle valiantly as the treatments, including partial lung removal, radiation, Gamma Knife rays, chemotherapy, and full-brain radiation, sapped her strength. Though her body continued to decline, her attitude and spirit never did. She managed to go to work every day after the chemo in the earlier stages. And all the way to the end, she somehow remained upbeat and positive, and her warm, loving spirit always shone through. She was and still is an inspiration to Brittany and me.
After that experience, cancer was no longer a theoretical concept for us; it was personal. Aunt Judie died on September 3, 2000, the beginning of my senior year of college. It was her life that was the catalyst for our vision. We wanted to help other Aunt Judies in the world.
As we became more familiar with the cancer treatment centers, our hearts especially went out to children with illnesses. We now work closely with children’s hospitals in New Orleans and San Diego and other organizations that treat kids with debilitating diseases. The Hope Lodge, which is affiliated with the American Cancer Society, provides housing for families with sick children who are coming from out of town for treatment. It offers a comforting place to stay, a “home away from home” for families who are going through so much upheaval in their lives. Whatever the length of their stay, they know the Hope Lodge will be available for them. The Brees Dream Foundation helps make that stay as comfortable and peaceful as possible.
There’s something about watching an innocent child suffer that cuts to your core. Not only are these kids in unimaginable pain, but they haven’t had an opportunity to lead a “normal” life yet, to just be a kid. At times, I think one of the most important parts of treatment can be simply putting smiles on kids’ faces or letting them know you’re there for them, encouraging them that they can pull through.
We’re very involved with some projects in Southern California from my time with the Chargers, and we still have a great relationship with the San Diego community. One of the most exciting opportunities has been a project at the hematology/oncology ward at Rady Children’s Hospital. In May 2010 we hosted a golf tournament that raised more than $100,000, which helped complete funding for Carley’s Magical Gardens, a pavilion in the hospital with a tree house, bronze animals, and a garden play area, where kids can relax and dream.
Since we established the foundation in 2003, Brittany had another aunt, Ann Jones, who passed away—this time from pancreatic cancer. It took her quickly and came as a shock to the whole family. Much like Aunt Judie, Aunt Ann was one of those people who held the family together. This experience was another reminder of why we feel compelled to do everything we can to help with cancer research and provide support for patients. We hope to put up two plaques beside Carley’s Magical Gardens with Aunt Judie’s and Aunt Ann’s names on them to commemorate their lives and the type of people they were.
We’ve also worked with an organization in San Diego called Friends of Scott. There was a young man named Scott Delgadillo, who died of cancer in 2001. His family started a foundation to fund different programs for children with life-threatening diseases. One of the programs we are especially excited about is for kids who miss their prom or formal dance due to illness. By hosting the Annual Unforgettable Prom night, this organization gives sick children a chance to get dressed up, ride in a limo, and celebrate a special evening. It’s a simple way for them to enjoy something cancer took from their lives. And since everything from the formalwear to the catered food is donated, this free event is a blessing to the parents as well as the kids.
The Brees Dream Foundation might sound pretty official, but in reality, the whole organization is just Brittany, me, and my marketing agent and good friend, Chris Stuart. And since the three of us take no pay for our work, we operate at nearly zero overhead cost. Our philosophy is simple—a dollar in is a dollar out. All the money raised in a specific community stays in that community. Our passion is clear—to help people. We don’t want anything to get in the way of that.
Although New Orleans and San Diego get most of the media attention, we are still thrilled to be making an impact back at Purdue University. In West Lafayette, Indiana, we support the Purdue Athletes Life Success program (PALS), a free camp offered during the summer for about four hundred kids. It was once run by the National Youth Sports program, but it looked like it would have to shut down when their federal funding was pulled. We’d seen research about how positively this camp was impacting the kids long-term, and we didn’t want to let the program die, so our foundation took it over. We fund it through a charity golf tournament and a special corporate relationship with Purdue Employees Federal Credit Union.
The camp uses sports to teach kids life skills—teamwork, discipline, leadership, and a good attitude. There’s also an art program, a computer program, and a financial literacy program that partners with the credit union. I’m the spokesperson for Visa’s practical money skills program, which teaches kids how to manage their money and live within their means. I strongly believe that the earlier you can start teaching kids how to manage and save their money, the better equipped they’ll be when they get to college and into their careers.
When I signed with New Orleans in 2006, we broadened the scope of our foundation to encompass the rebuilding efforts in the city, but our vision remained centered on kids. Less than a year removed from Katrina, we saw that there were still so many needs in New Orleans. We wanted to help rebuild schools, parks, playgrounds, and athletic fields, as well as fund child care programs, after-school programs, internships, and even teachers’ salaries at schools that needed it. I am a firm believer that when you provide kids with a healthy learning environment and constructive after-school activities like sports or clubs or the arts, you are keeping them out of trouble and putting them in the best position to succeed. After all the children of New Orleans had gone through—being displaced from their schools, having their parks destroyed, and losing some of their familiar, safe places—we felt this was the least we could do. We didn’t want them to lose out on any more of their childhood. The kids here have captured our hearts, and we know how vital the next generation is to the growth of the community.
In a lot of ways, this city and I have had parallel journeys. New Orleans was trying to come back at the same time I was rehabbing my shoulder and trying to resurrect my career. I had to learn how to throw again and then rebuild my arm strength, and it was the same with the city. There were areas where the floodwaters completely knocked homes and buildings off their foundations, and people had a chance to start over, to bring things back even better than they were before.
Somebody once said to me, “If you love New Orleans, it will love you back. But if you hate it, it will hate you back.” Brittany and I have found that as we’ve grown to love this city, it has given us more love than we ever could have expected. And as we’ve become involved in charitable work, the payback for us—emotionally and spiritually—has been far beyond what we will ever be able to provide for it.
Still, the needs were overwhelming at first. Where do you start when everything is devastated? Brittany and I had to ask ourselves some hard questions to figure out what the priorities should be. We felt like one of the best ways for the city to get back on its feet was to bring people home again. We kept coming back to a few central questions: What was going to attract people who had been displaced to return to New Orleans? What would draw people who had never lived here but could discover this as a land of opportunity and a great place to raise kids, like we had?
Across the board, parents want to give their children opportunities for success in life, and we figured some of their top priorities would be schools and sports programs. That’s why we targeted education, parks, athletics, and other youth activities. Those improvements were tangible rays of hope for the residents too—reminders that they could have confidence in their city and that the rebuilding would continue.
It took about a year to identify twelve projects in town we wanted to tackle, and in June 2007, with the help of our partner, Operation Kids, we launched the Rebuilding Dreams in New Orleans campaign. These twelve projects totaled $1.8 million and were targeted at the needs of children in the area. Some of the organizations we were helping had been let down before—federal money had been misappropriated, or those who had promised money hadn’t followed through. We told those groups, “We are committing to raise this money, or it will come out of our pockets. And the money is going to go where we’ve promised. You will see results.” We wanted to send the message that no matter how things had been done in the past, we were going to be dependable and reliable. They could count on us.
In May 2009, we completed the $1.8 million funding that went to those twelve organizations. One that really captured my heart was Lusher Charter School. Prior to Katrina, the building had housed another school that had been closed due to poor academic performance and other issues. When the hurricane hit, the empty facility was used as a shelter for the homeless and those escaping the storm. By the time the dust settled, the school was in terrible disrepair. But due to some extraordinary leadership, as well as the commitment of parents and children to return to their neighborhood, a new school was established in its place: Lusher Charter School.
They already had a strong music, theater, and dance program—the one thing they were missing was an athletic program. We were able to put about $750,000 toward a new athletic field and a weight room for training. Brittany and I go there to visit from time to time, and when we do, we feel like alumni. As we walk around, kids will casually say, “Hey, Drew,” and keep walking. They don’t rush up for an autograph or a picture—I’m just part of the Lusher family now. That’s a great feeling.
Another big project was a school right down the street from our house called Samuel J. Green Charter School. It’s a school for kindergarten through eighth grade that emphasizes culinary arts—hence its nickname, the Edible Schoolyard. They have a greenhouse and a garden where they grow fruits, vegetables, and spices right on the school grounds. They learn about the science of growing and what flourishes in different climates and at different times of the year. Then they use that food each day in the classroom and the lunchroom.
New Orleans has a long tradition in cuisine, so this school really fits the unique persona of our city. Plus, the opportunities it provides cultivate a sense of pride, self-esteem, and confidence in kids. Many students and their families come to school on the weekends to tend to their row of vegetables or fruit. We provided Samuel J. Green Charter School with $250,000 for the development of their Edible Schoolyard as well as the installation of a professional kitchen.
Over the years it has been fun to partner with other groups that have a similar vision for the city. Organizations we support like the Idea Village attract young, entrepreneurial talent to New Orleans to establish small businesses and bring jobs and stability to the city. The Brees Dream Foundation has been able to identify organizations that have great plans and solid leadership in place but need a little extra to get over the top and complete funding. We pride ourselves in finding these causes and helping to close out funding for some great projects in a way that will have a significant impact. The thought that this city could come back stronger was once only a dream. Now we can see the light at the end of the tunnel, but we must keep our heads down and press forward because there is still a lot of work left to do. We must stay focused and embrace the opportunity.
Giving back to the community isn’t only about money, either. As a professional athlete, whether you like it or not, you’re a role model. A lot of people—especially kids—look up to you. I know that when I was a kid, I watched the pros’ every move, hung on their every word, and tried to model my life after theirs. As important as it is to share the blessings I’ve been given, my heart needs to be in the right place too. I need to do the right things for the right reasons—out of a heart that cares about others and genuinely wants to make a difference.
I want kids to look at me and say, “When I grow up, I want to make that kind of impact on the world.” It’s not just about being a good athlete on the field; it’s also about being a giving person off the field.
As a quarterback, I can’t think of many thrills quite like seeing your team come together and accomplish an objective you’ve been working toward all season. That’s kind of how I feel about getting to see these different pieces of the foundation come together too. I love watching each person on the team working toward a common goal and making a difference.