A class act on the field, in the locker room and out in the public, Russell Wilson is doing it right.
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“I’m Russell Wilson. I’m a rookie for the Seahawks. I was hoping to set up a weekly visit to the Children’s Hospital.”
Since that proclamation, the Seahawks star quarterback makes a weekly visit to Seattle Children’s Hospital to visit patients. He also created the “Why Not You Foundation” as well as”Pass the Peace” campaign to raise money and awareness of the National Domestic Violence Hotline.
Wilson used to beat people up when he was growing up:
He was a bully when he was in elementary and middle school. He beat people up a lot and threw kids against the wall. He rubbed their heads in the dirt during recess. He bit them, and he even knocked teeth out. But he changed his ways.
“I’m not a perfect person by any means,” Wilson says. “I’m just a recovering bully. But if we start being honest about our pain, our anger, and our shortcomings instead of pretending they don’t exist, then maybe we’ll leave the world a better place than we found it. For those of us in the NFL, there’s no excuse for violence off the field.”
Beside the weekly visit to the children’s hospital, Wilson recently made a U.S Army serviceman’s day by upgrading him on the first class when they both shared an Alaska Airlines flight.
https://twitter.com/co_kane144/status/593659142314795008
Anytime Kane… Thanks for serving our great country by serving with the Army! #GoUSA ? @AlaskaAir https://t.co/s19IcAf7fZ
— Russell Wilson (@DangeRussWilson) April 30, 2015
https://twitter.com/co_kane144/status/593668457880653824
“Your actions stay with you forever, so you want to make sure those actions are something you’re proud of in the future.” – Wilson told a group of students about bullying.
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The Good Men Project Sports’ Tuesday weekly feature, Doing It Right, highlights athletes who gives back and/or make a difference in our society.
Photo Credit: Flickr/Keith Allison