The Super Bowl “Giving” Edition; How Ray Lewis and Vernon Davis Give Back!

It’s Super Bowl Sunday and rather you are rooting for the Ravens or the 49er, or for that matter just Beyonce; at BCG we’re always rooting for giving! In honor of Super Bowl, we decided to look at how two players; Vernon Davis and Ray Lewis give back. In the game of giving no one is a loser, check out how these two pro-bowl players give back, who’s your fav?

Since being drafted in 2006, Vernon Davis has been a force to be reckoned with as a tight end in the NFL. During the 2012 season, Davis caught 41 passes for 548 yards and 5 touchdowns, helping lead the 49ers to enter the Super Bowl for the first time in 18 years. Aside from football few may know, that Vernon Davis truly has a passion and a heart for the Arts, in fact he owns an art gallery and considers himself an artist. Last year at Super Bowl XLVI in Indianapolis, I had a chance to speak with Vernon about his foundation. I could see the passion in his eyes as he spoke on how his foundation provides funding for youth art programs and his love for the arts.

The Vernon Davis Foundation for the Arts was created to promote art education and art appreciation among youth from disadvantaged backgrounds. The organization seeks to fulfill it’s mission by providing scholarships to dedicated art students and grants to deserving nonprofit programs who share in our ideals.

The Vernon Davis Foundation for the Arts envisions communities where the arts are vital to social development and represent a positive alternative for youth dealing with stress and peer pressure. Through the arts, youth can find new ways to express themselves, to lift their spirits and fulfill their dreams. Good stuff Vernon!

Back in 2008 I had the pleasure of working with the Ray Lewis Foundation in Phoenix for Super Bowl XLII. I witnessed firsthand how Ray loves the kids, I was so moved as he ran the field with nearly 300 youth, gave them a prep talk about remaining vigilant in pursing their life’s goals. Nealry 17 years ago, Lewis formed the RL 52 FOUNDATION, whose mission is to provide personal and economic assistance to disadvantaged youth.

Ray has built a strong reputation on and off the field as a leader who cares enough to get things done. Since Ray first arrived in the Baltimore area, he has been a community staple when it pertains to helping the youth of our city. Most of the charities Ray chooses to partake in, he does without any fanfare. His enormous amounts of charitable donations have gone unpublicized. However, Ray now wants to get the public involved in his very righteous and charitable causes and that’s why The Ray Lewis Foundation has been established.

The Ray Lewis Foundation is committed to enhancing the lives of today’s at risk youth. Beyond his work with the Ray Lewis Foundation, Ray also has a big stake in another nonprofit mission in United Athletes Foundation. The United Athletes Foundation is a 501c3 public non-profit organization created in 2008 by a group of professional athletes including Ray, who understood their unique role in improving the lives of both the athlete fraternity and society in it’s entirety. To date, there are more than 90 professional athletes associated with the UA Foundation including members of the NFL, NBA, MLB, WNBA and professional boxing.