To give people a better life NFL player Warrick Dunn helped to build 145 homes for single mothers
Dunn said, “I wanted to do something that was a little bit more impactful, not just handing out turkeys, I wanted to do something that had a real impact in the community.”
Being kind is important for us people to live in a better world and to help someone in need is really lifesaving sometimes. In this world, there are a lot of people who are willing to give help anytime.
One of those people is a former NFL player named Warrick Dunn, he is a true hero.
However, his life was rough and he lost his single-parent mother when he was just a kid leaving him in charge of 4 other brothers and sisters.
His mother was a police officer in Louisiana and her name was Betty Dunn Smothers, she also worked as a security guard and that’s to fulfill her dream of owning a house. Tragically, one night, while she was working someone fired shots at her and at the owner of the store. She was pronounced dead at the scene while the owner was badly injured.
In 1994, Dunn said in an interview with the Los Angeles Times “I never really had a childhood, I’ve never been able to go out and just go crazy, like most kids, because I grew up staying in the house a lot, babysitting.”
At a young age Warrick took care of the house and his 4 siblings and with the help of his mother’s colleagues who raised over 200,000$ they managed to get the kids to live with their grandmother in Baton Rouge.
At that time Dunn said, “It’s something my mom always wanted, a house, and it’s something we couldn’t afford.”
After that Warrick started playing football for Florida State University and in the first round of the 1997 NFL draft he was chosen by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He managed to play for a total of 12 seasons.
During his time at Tampa Bay, his coach Tony Dungy challenged him to give back to the people of Florida, and of course, Dunn accepted. That was the first step for him to becoming the most generous person on earth. Giving become his lifestyle and today with his Homes for the Holidays program, he gave to 200 families’ homes.
Warrick said, “The more I learned, we wanted to get into the business of giving people the potential to break their cycle of poverty, over the last 21 years, I’ve just learned a lot about different issues people face.”
Dunn explained “We’ve come up with services that can really help give families tools so they can have some stability long term, and with that is financial literacy, health and wellness, education attainment and workforce development and entrepreneurship,”
His program is now enlarged with 3 more Hearts for Community Service, Count on Your Future, and Sculpt. These three programs provide financial stability and support for youngsters.
Warrick hopes for a better life for unprivileged kids.
Dunn said “It’s not just about home ownership. And it’s not just about the parents, it’s really more about the kids and their futures and trying to create a better society long term, I just want to be able to continue to wrap my arms around the communities that we’re in and really support them and help them grow and keep that stability.”
When he was a kid to overcome his sadness and get over his mother’s death Warrick found help from multiple counselors. After a long time of healing, he visited one of his mother’s murderers in jail and forgave them for killing his mom. This act proves that Dunn is one of a kind, he has a heart of gold and we are sure that his mother is up there smiling at him for the things he is doing for the people in need.
Don’t forget to share Dunn’s story with your friends and family
