Chris Long & the Waterboys
He is a back-to-back Super Bowl champion on different teams. Something only a handful of other NFL players have done. He just re-signed with the Philadelphia Eagles and is getting ready for the 2018-2019 season. He donated his entire 2017 salary to benefit educational charities -- a whopping 1 million dollars. He is Chris Long, and he didn’t stop there.
I was watching the Super Bowl back in February, cheering my heart out for the New England Patriots, when someone at the viewing party cheered for a player on the opposing team. I asked my hubs why that one player was so special, and he told me that Chris Long had a heart of gold.
Heart of gold? YES! I spent the rest of the game doing research on my phone and was shocked at how much good Chris had been doing since joining the NFL. Aside from donating his entire salary (unheard of!), in 2015 through the Chris Long Foundation, Chris launched Waterboys.
“Surrounded by friends and supporters in St. Louis, we celebrated the first 32 wells built by Waterboys. While this was definitely a team effort, I was so grateful to come back to the city that helped me launch the Waterboys initiative three short years ago. ”
Waterboys has served over 124 thousand people with access to clean water. Their new goal? Providing 1 million people with that same gift, #1Team1Million.
“I am energized by this new goal and excited to continue to Dig Deep and build more wells with the entire Waterboys team.”
The name may sound familiar because it’s named after the waterboys on the team. Such an important role with such little recognition. Teams across the NFL are getting involved. As Waterboys, players put aside allegiance and team up with fans in support of a single shared cause: providing clean, accessible drinking water to rural communities in East Africa.
This incredible journey started when Chris climbed the tallest peak in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro. While in Tanzania, he ran into two influential people in the community, Joe Buck and Doug Pitt. Both were in town building a sustainable water well. By the time Chris got home, the idea for Waterboys was born.
Other NFL players involved include Kyle Long of the Chicago Bears, Connor Barwin and Johnny Hekker of the Los Angeles Rams, Taylor Lewan of the Tennessee Titans, Calais Campbell of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Zach Martin of the Dallas Cowboys, and Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns.
Every dollar counts. Each deep borehole well can serve up to 7,500 people. Each well costs $45,000. Six dollars a person can save a life. It also can send children to school since most children, especially girls, stay home to help their mothers collect water. The water wells help families gain back the time they need to create and sell goods. The crops thrive, and water-related diseases, which cause 1 in 5 deaths of children, can be prevented. This isn’t just about quenching thirst, it’s about saving lives.
If you’d like to help save lives in East Africa, please DONATE NOW.
