NEW YORK -- Super Bowl XLIII brings much more than football to Central Florida. Throughout the week preceding the game, more than 50 charitable activities and community outreach programs will enliven and enrich the community and provide lasting legacies.
The week's activities will also include the announcement of the annual Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award and a celebration of the positive impact of the NFL Youth Education Town initiative.
The following are just some of the ways the NFL and Super Bowl XLIII will benefit the host community:
Super Bowl XLIII One World Super Huddle
Tampa Bay area fifth graders will learn about the differences that make them unique and the similarities that bring them together as part of the NFL's diversity program "One World: Connecting Communities, Cultures, and Classrooms." On Monday, January 26, eight classes from varying ethnic and racial backgrounds who have been communicating with each other through pen-pal letters will meet for the first time at Brooks DeBartolo Collegiate High School (11602 N. 15th Street, Tampa) from 9-11:30 a.m. Together, they will create an artistic depiction of Florida's diversity with the help of a local artist, learn about healthy foods from around the world with an area chef and get active with the help of the HOPSports Training System. Students will also have the opportunity to learn more about their pen pals and interact with NFL players such as Jermaine Phillips of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Duke Preston of the Buffalo Bills and Tony Richardson of the New York Jets. Local schools participating in the One World event are as follows: Brooksville Elementary, Crystal Lake, High Point Elementary, Richey Elementary, Sacred Heart Academy, Oneco Elementary, Orange Ridge and Witter Elementary.
What Moves U school visit
As part of NFL PLAY 60, the league's youth health and fitness campaign, Buccaneers safety Jermaine Phillips and Bills center Duke Preston will visit Dr. John Long Middle School (2025 Mansfield Blvd, Wesley Chapel) for a special What Moves U fitness activity on Tuesday, Jan. 27. What Moves U, developed in conjunction with the American Heart Association, is the primary in-school curriculum for NFL PLAY 60. Sixth graders at Dr. John Long Middle School took part in the NFL PLAY 60 What Moves U Challenge, a Super Bowl program that taught students the importance of getting 60 minutes of daily physical activity. Over 5,000 Tampa Bay fifth and sixth graders participated in the NFL PLAY 60 What Moves U Challenge in the months leading up to Super Bowl Week.
NFL PLAY 60 Kids' Day at the NFL Experience, presented by Bank of America
NFL PLAY 60 Kids' Day gives 2,000 local children the opportunity to attend a private session of The NFL Experience, Wednesday, Jan. 28, from 11 a.m.- 2 p.m. Kids' Day gives under-served children in the community the chance to take part in the excitement of Super Bowl Week free of charge. Current and former NFL players including Terrell Davis, formerly of the Denver Broncos, Eric Green of the Arizona Cardinals, Vincent Jackson of the San Diego Chargers, Adrian Jones of the Kansas City Chiefs, Tony McDaniel of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Jermaine Phillips of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Duke Preston of the Buffalo Bills, Darelle Revis and Tony Richardson of the New York Jets, and Nick Sorenson of the Cleveland Browns will be on hand to interact with the children.
Kids will learn more about the importance of healthy living during Kids' Day as part of NFL PLAY 60, aimed at helping youngsters get 60 minutes of exercise each day. Some lucky Tampa Bay students who completed the NFL PLAY 60 What Moves U Challenge will be special guests at Kids' Day. As part of the contest, local students were challenged to get 60 minutes of physical activity a day.
Kids' Day will conclude with a press conference with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell at 1 p.m. at the clinic field within the NFL Experience. Commissioner Goodell will be joined by NFL players including Warrick Dunn of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Florida Governor Charlie Crist and Tampa Bay Buccaneers Executive Vice-President Bryan Glazer. During the press conference, Commissioner Goodell will recognize this year's NFL PLAY 60 Super Kid, a young fan committed to getting 60 minutes of exercise a day who will run on-field before Super Bowl XLIII begins and hand the ball to an official.
NFL PLAY 60 character breakfast
On Thursday, Jan. 29 from 8-9:30 a.m., NFL players Tony Mitchell of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tony Richardson of the New York Jets and Nick Sorenson of the Cleveland Browns will be joined by characters from Nickelodeon and the Buccaneers mascot for an NFL PLAY 60 character breakfast. Over 700 children, grades K-8, from Roland Park Elementary (1510 N. Manhattan Ave., Tampa) will enjoy a nutritious breakfast with the players and mascots; during breakfast, players will educate the students about making healthy nutritional choices for every meal of the day. Following the breakfast, fifth and sixth grade students will participate in a fitness activity with the players.
NFL Youth Education Town
The NFL has constructed Youth Education Towns (YETs) for 15 years in Super Bowl host cities. The YET program is aimed at positively impacting youth in at-risk neighborhoods. There are two NFL Youth Education Towns of Tampa Bay located in Mort Park and Jackson Heights. Both facilities opened following Super Bowl XXXV and currently serve hundreds of children and their families.
Joined by government officials, host committee members, Tampa Bay Buccaneers representatives and NFL players including Pro Football Hall of Famer Steve Young, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell will announce a $1 million NFL gift to the two Tampa Bay NFL YET Centers and celebrate the ways that the centers have benefited the surrounding community at a press conference on Thursday, Jan. 29 at 4 p.m. at the Mort Park Youth Education Town (1815 E. 148th Ave., Tampa).
This year, funds donated by the NFL and the Tampa Bay Super Bowl XLIII Host Committee will be used to fund expansions to the two centers, including new fitness spaces and multi-media technology labs. A recently completed football field at the Mort Park Center will be unveiled at the press conference.
Super Bowl XLIII Business Leadership Forum
The City of St. Petersburg's Midtown Economic Development Business Assistance Center and five of the Tampa/St. Petersburg area's leading minority business leadership groups will join the NFL and Sprint to host the Super Bowl XLIII Business Leadership Forum, an event that will bring together corporate leaders, up-and-coming business executives, entrepreneurs and small, minority and women business owners to discuss leadership, winning business strategies and realities of a diverse workplace in America. The forum presents an opportunity for discussions of issues, challenges and opportunities facing today's business leaders.
Dawna Stone, 2005 Apprentice winner and nationally recognized sports magazine publisher, will be joined by fromer NFL players turned businessmen and local business leaders during a 60-minute exchange of thoughts, perspectives and business strategies. A networking reception will precede the forum.
The Diversity Business Forum is on Thursday, Jan. 29 from 5-8 p.m. at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort and Golf Club in St. Petersburg. It is a ticketed event.
NFL Youth Football Super Bowl Clinics
More than 2,000 children from local youth football programs and community youth agencies, as well as those attending NFL Experience, will learn flag football fundamentals, sportsmanship and teamwork from current and former NFL players as well as local youth coaches. The clinics include an NFL PLAY 60 Youth Football Festival and NFL FLAG clinics, all presented by Nike. NFL Punt, Pass and Kick sessions and clinics for local Special Olympians, girls flag football teams, and the children of military members will take place throughout Super Bowl Week. All NFL Youth Football activities will take place at the clinic fields within NFL Experience, adjacent to Raymond James Stadium. The clinic schedule is as follows:
Saturday, January 24-Sunday, January 25: NFL PLAY 60 Youth Football Festival Presented by Nike; Clinic for children of military members
Thursday, January 29: NFL FLAG Clinics presented by Nike; Clinic for Special Olympians
Friday, January 30: NFL FLAG Clinics presented by Nike
Saturday, January 31: Girls Flag Football demonstration; NFL FLAG Clinics presented by Nike; NFL Punt Pass & Kick Clinics; USA Football Skills Combine
