Was having a convo yesterday w @cherylmcbrown the mom of McKenna Brown – teenage ice hockey goalie we lost to suicide not long ago. Cheryl had looped me in on a convo she’d been having w one of the pro sports teams abt using McKenna’s/their fam’s story, to help educate arnd MH to the entire fan base.
Cheryl looped me in to help, given my bkgrnd working in sports for these teams, & the programs we have that they could anchor McKenna’s story as a change agent, arnd. We got on a call w the head of Community Engagement for this team & just began sharing…some of McKenna’s story…some of mine.
Often when I’ve been on those calls & have shared alone, the team lead’s very nice…they say they want to help…& as a team they also have objectives – ticket sales, sponsorship sales revenue goals, etc.
That wasn’t the case on this call. After Cheryl & I shared, this guy stopped us to say: “Let me tell you why this topic matters to ME.” He shared his own struggles, & those of this brother & dad. And then he shared a line that grabbed me, & was the impetus for this post:
“This sport & this team is just my vehicle for change. A few yrs down the road I may have another vehicle. But right now this is it, & it’s how I get to positively impact the most ppl. So that’s what we’re gonna do.”
Honestly the line grabbed me bc…it’s not a common one to hear, having worked in that industry for so long. It’s usually: “this job was the perfect fit for me bc I love hockey/baseball/basketball/football/soccer, grew up playing, & now I get to do good arnd it.” That’s not at all what this guy shared – he literally just thought of the team as HIS vehicle to help others.
It got me thinking to what @darrenrovell has shared w me abt turning 40 & wanting to do something more meaningful in his life beside sports, his Twitter profile, reporting on the biz side etc. Got me thinking to the story Theo told me abt when he first wrote his book & how others came to him & he was “run over” by others telling theirs. Both men now drop everything to do our wkly podcast, reshare social posts. HELPING others is the greatest natural drug in the world. And it’s free.