Heisman and Nissan Team Up for Charity
Each year, college football’s most outstanding player raises the Heisman Memorial Trophy, a triumphant gesture recognized by anyone involved in the sport. This past April, six former Heisman winners got together to lift spirits when they conducted a youth football clinic and helped raise the walls of a new Habitat for Humanity home—an act that will forever change the lives of a local Dallas family forever.
Kicking off the weekend on Friday was the Heisman Youth Football Clinic, an event created last year in collaboration with Nissan, the Heisman Trophy Trust and United Way. This year, United Way of Metropolitan Dallas identified Jubilee Park & Community Center’s Afterschool program as an exemplary initiative that would benefit greatly from a football clinic of this kind.
Leading the football clinic was Heisman trophy winner and former Dallas Cowboy great Roger Staubach (1963, Navy). Joining Staubach in running drills and engaging more than 150 youths was fellow Heisman winners George Rogers (1980, South Carolina) and Ricky Williams (1998, Texas). The Jubilee Park & Community Center is located in an underserved area of southeast Dallas.
Then on Saturday, Rogers and Williams teamed up with three more Heisman winners – Dallas native Tim Brown (1987, Notre Dame), Billy Sims (1978, Oklahoma) and Herschel Walker (1982, Georgia) along with Heisman Trustee, Carol Pisano, Heisman Director, Rob Whalen and Coordinator, Tim Henning as well as many Nissan employees and a Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity construction crew to help raise the walls of a new home. This unique collaboration grew out of existing relationships between Nissan and its longtime partners Habitat for Humanity and the Heisman Trophy Trust. Together, the three organizations raised the frame of a new home for a deserving family.
“It’s an absolute honor to be here with my Heisman brothers and lend a helping hand to those in need of affordable housing,” said Brown. “Winning the Heisman was a monumental feat in all our lives, but little can really compare to the feeling of helping others. To have the opportunity to do this in my hometown of Dallas—just miles away from where I grew up—makes it that much more special, and I thank the Heisman Trust, Nissan, Habitat for Humanity and United Way for helping make this a reality.”
“In Nissan’s first-ever build with both Habitat for Humanity and the Heisman Trust last year, we saw first-hand the power of working together to change lives for the better, and the smiles on family members’ faces was an incredible reminder of the importance of community service,” said Nissan Marketing Vice President Jon Brancheau. “Together with Habitat for Humanity and the Heisman Trust, we’re continuing our mission to improve the communities where our employees and customers live, and we’re grateful to these athletes for joining in this one-of-a-kind partnership to build this house.”
In 2011, Nissan launched the “Heisman House” concept to highlight its sponsorship of The Heisman Memorial Trophy, which is awarded annually to an outstanding college football player. The campaign gathers many of the most celebrated college football players of the last 50 years into the fraternal order of the Heisman House. Since then, a number of Heisman winners have joined Nissan in support of its ongoing Habitat for Humanity efforts.
To View a Video from the 2012 Nissan / Heisman Home Build click here:
