Fighting Food Insecurity with Football: Here’s What Joe Burrow and Farmers Have in Common
My children and I watched live on television when the Cincinnati Bengals selected Athens, Ohio native Joe Burrow as their number one NFL draft pick in 2020. The 2019 Heisman trophy winner used his instant fame as a national platform to highlight poverty and food insecurity facing Southeast Ohio.
“Coming from Southeast Ohio, it’s a very, very impoverished area. The poverty rate is almost two times the national average,” Burrow said. “There are so many people there that don’t have a lot, and I’m up here for all those kids in Athens and Athens County that go home to not a lot of food on the table, hungry after school. You guys can be up here, too.”
That NFL draft speech from Joe Burrow struck a chord with me and easily makes me want to cheer for his team come this Super Bowl Sunday. You see, my father grew up poor, beyond my comprehension. My late father and his sister were frequently left abandoned by their single mother growing up. The only food the sibling pair could find is a bag of flour, to which they'd add some water to eat. Food scarcity is a topic that our household frequently openly talks about, as we know firsthand how blessed we are.
The statistics are alarming—according to Feeding America, 1 in 7 Americans struggle with hunger. It is now estimated that 42 million people, including 13 million children, face food insecurity. COVID-19 drew a big light and much needed attention to this issue. Having celebrities and athletes like NFL Quarterback Joe Burrow bring attention to this topic is also needed. Burrow’s 2019 speech led to a Facebook support page that quickly raised more than $350,000. Then in 2020, it led to the creation of the “Joe Burrow Hunger Relief Fund.”
In December, Burrow laced up his special orange-and-green cleats for the NFL’s “My Cause, My Cleats” campaign to help support and campaign for his hunger relief fund. On one side, Burrow’s cleats say, “Foundation for Appalachian Ohio.” On the other side, “Athens County Food Pantry.” On the back, “Joe Burrow Hunger Relief Fund.”
Again, Burrow used his platform and national spotlight to focus on food insecurity in Athens.
“It's had a big impact to provide meals for people when they need it in the area where I'm from,” Burrow said. “The last number I saw, a couple months ago, we raised, at that point, over $6 million for people in the area. There's a lot of stories I've heard where it's really helped some people, and that means a lot to me.”
So, while all my kids can talk about is the arm of the young quarterback kid from Athens High School in Ohio, what makes me smile is his big platform that shines a big light on food insecurity. At a young age, Joe Burrow understands that he is one of the lucky ones. Not because he went onto LSU to play football or was drafted to play football in the NFL or because he is taking his team to the Super Bowl for the first time in 34 years. Like most of us, Burrow feels he is one of the fortunate ones, simply because he has food on his table. Something that many in his community, and around the world, don't.
In 2021, more than 2.2 billion servings of milk, cheese and yogurt have been distributed through the Feeding America network. That all translates to 664 million pounds of dairy distributed to families in need.
One way to prepare for the Super Bowl is to follow Joe Burrow’s lead and help fight food insecurity. Donate by making a gift to Joe Burrow Hunger Relief Fund at www.JoeBurrowFund.org or donate to Feeding America at www.feedingamerica.org.
