KC Sports Teams lend a helping hand
By Sam Kombrink
I want to start off by wishing all readers and residents of south KC good health during these troubling times. We will overcome this pandemic, and our communities will emerge victorious, like the sports teams that represent our town.
Kansas City Sports teams have decided to lend a helping hand during this COVID-19 pandemic. There may be no games to cover for a while, possibly mid to late May, but I am always proud to write about our teams supporting the people of Kansas City.
Chiefs
Chiefs wide receiver Tyreek Hill announced he was donating 6,000 meals to Harvesters and told his teammates to chip in. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes announced that he plans to donate $100,000 to local organizations to help combat COVID-19 through the 15 and the Mahomies Foundation. Mahomes also pledged to provide 15,000 meals to Harvesters. Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce responded to say he was donating 12,000 meals.
As for the NFL, it is business as usual with NFL Free agency. NFL announced it still plans to have the NFL draft on April 23, though it canceled the draft-related events in Las Vegas. The league has postponed the start of offseason team activities and banned free-agent visits. NFL.com’s Judy Battista reported at least one team owner “would be surprised if teams will be able to report any time before training camp.”
Sporting KC
Sporting Kansas City Soccer announced that Major League Soccer unveiled “MLS Unites,” a league-wide platform that highlights all of the efforts that MLS players, coaches, clubs and the league are doing to address the important messages and programs taking place during the COVID-19 pandemic. The new initiative was launched in partnership with the Major League Soccer Players Association.
As part of MLS Unites, the league will have a series of programs involving MLS clubs, players, coaches, staff, partners and fans, that will encompass the following:
- Educate and inform fans on the importance of key health and safety messaging.
- Provide some fun and engaging content featuring MLS players that will keep them connected to our fans and drive relevance during the postponement of the season.
- Showcase and celebrate community “heroes,” those who are fighting the pandemic on the frontlines.
Royals
The Kansas City Royals have also been busy as they prepare for the start of the short 2020 season. CEO John Sherman announced that the Kansas City Royals were giving a donation to on behalf of the club’s investors, players and Royals Charities to Harvesters to fund more than 500,000 meals during this time of food insecurity
On March 25, the community initiative “Royals Respond” was created to help support KC through the COVID-19 crisis. The project will be led by staff throughout the front office. The effort will offer resources to the community and helpful information and entertaining content for those who miss baseball. For more details fans are invited to visit royals.com/royalsrespond.
Additionally, Royals Charities has created the Royals Respond Fund to support Kansas City-area nonprofits who care for those affected by the COVID-19 crisis. Together with Royals players, the team’s ownership group, associates and Royals Charities Community Champions Price Chopper and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, the fund will initially support the effort to fight hunger as a result of school closures and quarantines. Royals Charities has announced the first Royals Respond grants will be given to Harvesters, The Community Food Network, the Don Bosco Center’s Meals on Wheels program and Cross-Lines Community Outreach, Inc. Fans can donate at royals.com/royalsrespond.
During these tough times we should remember the importance of the golden rule and look to inspire one another, like our sports teams inspire us all. Both the Royals and the Chiefs have been at the bottom of the league, and then through years of hard work they made it to the top and were crowned champions. Kansas City is a city of Champions, and while there are no sports to watch at our local bars, we can still give them business. In these times we need to support each other, we need to stay positive, and we need to be unselfish.
Let us not forget to lead by example. Kobe Bryant once said, “The most important thing is to try and inspire people so that they can be great at whatever they want to do.”
We can get through this Kansas City.