Football

Jets lineman Kelvin Beachum helped raise $70K for meals on World Food Day

By Jon Ackerman Oct 18, 2018
New York Jets' Kelvin Beachum (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

Tuesdays are typically off days in the NFL (unless a team plays on Thursday or Monday). And most players use those days for much-needed rest and recovery.

But they can also be days for NFL players to do something other than football, and Jets offensive lineman Kelvin Beachum took advantage his off day earlier this week. Tuesday happened to be October 16, which is World Food Day. It’s celebrated every year around the world to honor the date that the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations was founded in 1945.

So in advance of World Food Day, Beachum created a match challenge for five U.S. food banks: Mexia, Texas (his hometown); Dallas, Texas (the town of his college, SMU); Jacksonville, Fla. (his first NFL city); Pittsburgh, Pa. (second NFL city); and New York (current NFL city). He planned to donate $5,000 to each of the five food banks, and would double his donation if the $5,000 was matched by community members.

On Tuesday afternoon, Beachum announced the donation results:

And Beachum wasn’t just donating money, he gave his time as well:

“What it does for me is it allows me to keep things in perspective,” Beachum told the AP. “I was one of those kids that was on food stamps growing up. We had to lean on the WIC program. We had people who helped us out. So, for me, that keeps me grounded, honestly, because I was there.”

Beachum’s heart to serve others stems from his walk with Christ. He recently shared with us at The Increase how he strives to be a light for his teammates.

“I would hope that my teammates would be able to look at my life and say that I’m consistent. I believe that is the ultimate measure of a Christian man. It’s not always going to be easy; the path isn’t always going to be hunky dory. But more than anything, it’s important to be a light, to be that person others know they can talk to, pray with, lean on and trust in any situation.”

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