curated by kay mckenzie

Last weekend Panthers quarterback Cam Newton took Coachella by storm with his fashion choice. What many didn’t know is that same week he also teamed up with the Make-a-Wish Foundation and spent the day at a Knights game with a group of kids. I’m noticing a lot more of how the media seems to overlook when athletes have positive news. They seem to only focus on the negative or what they deem entertaining. It is astonishing how much attention Newton’s choice of outfit at Coachella got when, in the same week, he is giving back and uplifting others and there is no media present to capture it.

Newton’s foundation, The Cam Newton Foundation, also has two more events coming up. The first event will be the Annual 7vs7 Football Tournament June 2-3 in Atlanta. Newton will interact with coaches and players; there will also be prizes and giveaways. The next event is Newton’s third annual Cam Newton Foundation Charity Event Weekend June 9-10 in Charlotte, NC. For more information, you can visit Cam1newton.com. In the last six months Newton’s foundation has hosted its third annual Santa Cam Surprise Sleigh in December where they raised over $100,000. In November, Cams Thanksgiving Jam was held.

Newton isn’t the only athlete working towards a cause. Brandon Marshall and his wife Michi founded Project375, in hopes to change people’s perception of how brain health is viewed. They not only attend mental health conferences all over the nation but the foundation also host its own training conference to teach others how to help their loved ones who suffer with mental health.

Brandon Marshall was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder (BDP) in 2011. The disorder presents itself as instability with emotions, relationships and behaviors. His goal for Project375 is to break the stigma of what people think of mental health and to better recognize it. At one time, he was considered violent and arrested, but afterward his arrest was associated with this mental disorder he didn’t know he had at the time.

In May, Project375 will host Paddle Battle in San Francisco to help raise money and support for mental health. You can find more information in Paddle Battle and how to contribute to Project375 on their website, project375.og.

These are just a few things Newton, Marshall, and so many others have been doing, but for some reason you are not hearing much about them. If anything, it shows the type of people they are and how far they will go to help others. They have no reason to give so much of their time and energy except for the want and continuous need to keep helping those who need it. Newton and Marshall are just two of the many athletes who take time out of their lives to enrich others. Somehow it doesn’t get the same coverage as “entertaining” news.