New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and his wife, Brittany, announced back in March that they would donate $5 million to the state of Louisiana to help ease the harmful effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Now, with the virus disproportionately affecting under-served communities in Louisiana, the Brees family wants to continue to help.
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In a video posted on Instagram this week, the couple pledged another $5 million through the Brees Dream Foundation to support healthcare throughout those under-served Louisiana communities. Drew and Brittany Brees established their foundation in 2003 to help cancer patients and provide opportunities for children and families in need.
“As we work through one of the greatest challenges of our lifetimes, our health and wellness has never been more important. The Brees Dream Foundation is proud to commit $5 million to support healthcare in Louisiana. In partnership with Ochsner Health, we will create community health centers in under-served communities throughout the great state of Louisiana,” Brees said in the video.
The 41-year-old future Hall of Famer has deep ties to New Orleans and the state of Louisiana as a whole. He left the San Diego Chargers after five seasons to join the New Orleans Saints in 2006 and was important in the city’s recovery from Hurricane Katrina.
He led the Saints to the franchise’s only Super Bowl title after the 2009 season and has reached 13 Pro Bowls, 12 with the Saints. Brees holds NFL records for most passing yards, touchdowns and completions.
In a 2018 video with Sports Spectrum, Brees explained how the Lord placed it on his heart to sign with a struggling team in a city that had endured so much:
“We were just looking at the sheer devastation and just saying, ‘I’m not going to trust what I see with my eyes here, because my eyes are telling me not to come here. And yet, my heart, my soul, the Lord is telling me that this is our calling.’ It’s not about just coming to play football and be a part of the resurgence of a football team or an organization, but it’s about the resurrection, rebirth of a city and we can be a part of that.”
Brees has been unashamed about speaking publicly of his faith in Christ throughout his time in the NFL. Last season Brees appeared in a video posted by a “Bring Your Bible” YouTube channel run by the Christian organization Focus on the Family. Brees was subsequently criticized by some media outlets, so he later posted his own video on social media in which he explained that it is Christ who guides his life.
“I live by two very simple Christian fundamentals,” he said in the video, “and that is love the Lord with all your heart, mind and soul, and love your neighbor as yourself.”
With the latest donation to a state that has seen roughly 111,000 confirmed cases, he and Brittany are doing just that.
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