Chargers make commitment to service

For more than 45 years, the Chargers have earned the reputation for being one of San Diego’s most civic-minded citizens because of the team’s strong commitment to community service by its owners, front office and players. 

Throughout the year, every Chargers player serves the community in some form or fashion. It’s not uncommon to see Chargers players out lending a hand almost every week in some part of the county.  Special community events like the Chargers annual Blood Drive, the Back to School Shoe Distribution, Kids NewsDay or the Teddy Bear Drive are only part of the picture. Without the fanfare of these bigger events, players are out regularly making appearances at local schools, youth sporting events and convalescent homes.

 

Each season, players host more than a thousand area youth and their families to Chargers home games through the Chargers Community Corner program. This initiative allows various nonprofit agencies the opportunity to provide children with an opportunity to see a Chargers home game in person. Along with the tickets provided by the players, each child receives a t-shirt, hot dog and soda compliments of the team. Last season, 11 players participated in the program providing more than 200 children tickets to each home game. That group included Philip Rivers, Donnie Edwards, LaDainian Tomlinson, Kassim Osgood, Mike Goff, Drayton Florence, Luis Castillo, Mike Scifres and Greg Camarillo.

 

The same players who lead the Chargers on the field also lead the effort to impact lives and help others off the field. In addition to being named NFL MVP last season, Tomlinson was also co-winner of the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, the only NFL award that honors both on-field excellence and community service. 

Tomlinson received this honor because of the work of his “LT Touching Lives Foundation.” In addition to holding free football camps in San Diego and in his native Texas, the organization is also committed to education through the “L.T. School is Cool Scholarship Program.”  This program annually donates scholarships and school supplies to local youth in need of assistance. Another Foundation program, “Giving Thanks With L.T.”, distributes 1,400 Thanksgiving Dinners to needy families from San Diego County the Tuesday before Thanksgiving.  L.T. is also a very familiar face at Rady Children’s Hospital where he is a regular visitor and distributes roughly 1,500 toys to patients  during the holiday season.

Linebacker Shawne Merriman devotes much of his time to helping the homeless through the “Lights On Foundation.” Last winter, the Pro Bowler donated $7,500 to help keep a homeless shelter in Downtown San Diego open through the rainy season when funding ran out. Next weekend, Merriman will host the “Lights On Comedy Jam,” a two-day charitable event benefiting the Lights On Foundation/Pro Player Foundation, which support the San Diego Salvation Army and the Alpha Project for the Homeless.

 

Kassim Osgood is another player who can regularly be seen in the community. Osgood’s “Team K.O.” Foundation is a partner with Athletes for Education, whose objective is to build up self-esteem and self confidence in our youth in an effort to encourage them to dream, set goals and become a successful, positive and influential part of the Community of San Diego.  Evey week, Kassim is out at area schools talking with children and each season he personally hosts 50 children per game in the Community Corner.

 

Roman Oben is one of the most experienced Chargers players and is an outspoken leader in the community. In 2003, Oben was honored by the Vincent T. Lombardi Foundation as a Vince Lombardi Champion for his community service in his hometown of Washington D.C.  Roman also supports many worthy causes including Big Brothers/Big Sisters of America, the United Way, Special Olympics, and the fight against illiteracy and hunger.

Roman founded his Roman Oben Foundation to promote positive development of youth through football, literacy and other community outreach projects. The foundation annually holds football camps, a Thanksgiving Dinner giveaway and a holiday toy drive. This spring, Oben returned to his native country of Cameroon, West Africa where he oversaw the construction of a dormitory at an orphanage and provided financial assistance to many local families. 

 

Luis Castillo is another player who has taken his service opportunities outside the U.S. boarders as well. During a trip to the Dominican Republic last spring, Luis hosted a youth football clinic and was honored with the Youth of the Year Award for excellence outside of the Dominican Republic. The award ceremony was attended by many of the country’s highest-ranking political dignitaries, including the President of the Dominican Republic. Castillo has also hosted football camps in Mexico and regularly speaks to San Diego youth. 

 

Philip Rivers is the spokesman for the popular “Toss for Tots” program benefiting Rady Children’s Hospital where fans donate funds for each touchdown the Chargers score during the season. Rivers also regularly speaks at local schools and annually hosts a flag football game for students at the YET Center, an educational and recreational facility for at-risk children. 

 

In 2005, Marlon McCree started the nonprofit foundation “Help a Child – Save a Dream,” in his hometown of Orlando, Florida. One of the Foundation’s basic principles is to help underprivileged kids obtain necessary school supplies including books and computers. In June, the city’s Mayor honored Marlon for his work in the community by presenting him with an honorary key to the city.

 

The Drayton Florence Foundation strives to develop programs to help disadvantaged youth in his hometown of Ocala, Florida as well as San Diego. For each of the last two years, Florence has hosted a football camp at his alma mater, Vanguard High School, and a celebrity golf classic.

 

Fullback Lorenzo Neal and close friend Major Rodgers established the “Changing a Generation Foundation” to help youth from Fresno High School learn to set and achieve goals while working toward a college education.

 

Long snapper David Binn holds a degree in ecology and established the David Binn Foundation to support environmental education and scholarship programs. The Foundation supports several worthy causes including the annual “Teddy Bear Drive to Children’s Hospital,” in which Binn joins forces with the local Police Departments to deliver stuffed animals to young patients.

 

Several players have affiliated themselves with various health organizations. In honor of his grandfather, Gylum Diggs, who died of cancer when Quentin Jammer was in the eighth grade, the Bolts’ star cornerback makes a significant contribution to the American Cancer Society for every pass he intercepts. Jammer also works closely with the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Diego County each year visiting sites, working with kids and hosting an annual Thanksgiving Dinner.

 

Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates annually serves as the honorary chairman for the Shoot to Cure HD, a speed free-throw shooting event that raises money for the Huntington’s Disease Society of America. Antonio has also donated his time standing on street corners selling special newspapers on Kids News Day.

 

Safety Clinton Hart has taken on several projects of his own in the community. He hosts a youth football camp and donates time and resources to the Webster Sports Complex near his hometown of Bushnell, Fla. He recently helped rebuild the roof on the church he and his family attended in Webster. Clinton has always enjoyed working with kids. He worked as a counselor and recreation specialist at the Marion Youth Development Center in Ocala, Fla.

 

Goff has found several creative ways to serve. An accomplished chef, last spring he donned his apron and participated in a Battle of the Chefs event to help raise money for teammate Kassim Osgood’s Team KO foundation. He’s also working to help cancer patients. After growing out his hair for more than three years, Goff will soon trim his mane and donate it to Locks for Love, an organization that makes wigs for people undergoing chemotherapy.

 

Players like Nate Kaeding, Antonio Cromartie, Igor Olshansky and Shaun Phillips annually host youth football camps and teammates such as Mike Scifres, Malcom Floyd, Tim Dobbins, Jacques Cesaire, Greg Camarillo and Eric Parker are always quick to volunteer to assist with community events. Marcus McNeill, Kris Dielman and Brandon McKinney enjoy speaking at schools and do so regularly. 

 

Being a member of the San Diego Chargers is about being a good community partner, and without a doubt, these outstanding players fill the bill.