83 Reasons to Love Wes Welker

My wife, Sarah was working at Western Village Academy, an Oklahoma City public school that is chartered by Integris Health. Sarah had been working there for several years and had fallen in love with the kids. Many of the kids at WVA were in tough economic situations and some of the kids were known to have a tough home life. Every week I would go over and mentor kids in Sarah's classroom, and over time, I fell in love with the kids, too. My brother, Wes Welker, while in high school and during the off season at Texas Tech and the Miami Dolphins, frequented Western Village Academy. He would hang out with the kids, throw the football around, mentor the kids and would occasionally buy a kid clothes. Sarah was coaching soccer after school and one of the girls she coached was Jada Clemons. Her father is Charles Clemons. Charles, along with his long time friend Alvin Chandler, ran a football league on the Northeast side of Oklahoma City that catered to about 1,800 kids. Charles and I would talk football all the time and he would always tell me about all the kids who had been in his league over the years and gone on to become football stars. But more importantly, Chuck told me success stories he had seen in the lives of the kids. He talked of how several of the kids in the league had it tough at home, but being a part of the football league and competing and practicing and training had helped them develop a confidence and self esteem they may have not been able to attain in other ways. I quickly became an admirer of what Chuck and Alvin were doing with their football league. Chuck and I quickly became friends and his daughter Jada was a flower girl in our wedding. Not long after, Wes was a rookie in the NFL playing for the struggling Miami Dolphins. He called after the season was over and said he wanted to do something for inner-city kids in Oklahoma City. He wanted to put on a camp for kids who didn't get the opportunity to go to other camps. It was pretty amazing. The only thing I did after Wes told me he wanted to do this camp was pick up the phone and call Chuck. Chuck was all over it. That summer we had a great turnout for the camp. We had 300 kids from Chuck and Alvin's league show up. It was a blast. We really didn't know exactly what we were doing, and basically we put the deal together in a month, but people came out of the woodwork to volunteer and help run the camp. Wes went out there and went wild with the kids for about six hours in 104 degree heat outside, and the kids absolutely ate it up. We would stop the camp for breaks throughout the day. Wes would talk to the kids about the habits and the characteristics it takes to be successful, not only in the NFL but in life. Things like hard work, determination, attitude, humility, and faith. It was awesome. The next year we put on the camp again, and again we had great success with it. This time a bunch of people donated to it. People loved what Wes was doing, and they believed in the cause so much that they decided to donate to it even though we weren't an official 501 C3 meaning they couldn't get a tax write off. Not long after that we became an official non-profit organization. After some time of figuring out how we wanted to impact kids' lives in Oklahoma City, the board came up with the mission statement: To influence at-risk youth by encouraging their full potential through athletics and positive role models. Right then the 83 Foundation was born. That summer we put on the camp and added a fund raiser. Wes brought in the then-not- famous quarterback Matt Cassel, three-time special teams Pro-Bowler Larry Izzo, along with some of his old Texas Tech buddies. Kliff Kingsbury and Mike Smith of the Baltimore Ravens also showed up. All the guys went out and coached the kids during the camp, and then that night we had our first annual 83 Foundation Fundraiser called Cleats and Cocktails. It was a smash hit. Some of the projects the 83 Foundation has funded include a new weight room at Southeast high school, shoulder pads, helmets, cleats, and other equipment to Youth Builders Incorporated (YBI). The 83 Foundation donated new uniforms and warm-ups to the boys and girls basketball teams at Aztec Charter School and we are currently getting ready to unveil the newest project which is a new weight room and fitness room at the Boys and Girls Club in Oklahoma City. Wes's career in the NFL has bypassed everyone's expectations. Wes knows he has been incredibly blessed and he has appreciated the people in his life that have believed in him and given him opportunities to succeed. Now the 83 Foundation is Wes's chance to give other kids their opportunity for success.