Cam Newton showed up and showed out for more than 1,200 kids who he served during his Thanksgiving Jam charitable event on Monday the Charlotte Observer reports.
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The flamboyant Carolina Panthers quarterback gave dinners to families at TopGolf’s Charlotte location and after their bellies were full, he sent them home with their hands full of food to make their own Thanksgiving meal on Thursday.
“We want to help as many people as possible. Just to think, we feed upwards of 1,200 kids and families today and there’s still people that’s still hungry. You just can’t do enough,” said Newton who teamed up with supermarket chain Harris Teeter to pull off the event.
Newton didn’t leave the work to his volunteers, either. He rolled up his sleeves and served families along with his two-year-old son, Chosen by his side.
“It’s just so heartwarming during the holiday time to be able to spread cheer and show people that we respect everyday Americans,” said Newton’s father Cecil, who thanked Harris Teeter, the Cam Newton Foundation and volunteers for making the event a huge success.
“We never want to get to a point where we’re not sensitive to what life is like on the other side of the fence.
“One of our keynote scriptures is of whom much is given, much is required. It’s not just about him obtaining wealth,” Cecil Newton said. “At this point he can distribute influence, distribute dollars in a well-spent manner. That’s what you’re seeing here, we’re collectively trying to come together and do some things to impact the kids.”
About 240 children who attend Title I schools were brought to Charlotte from the Boys and Girls Club of York County to participate in the event.
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“It’s a true blessing. One, to get out of York County, because most of them don’t get a chance to come to Charlotte,” she said. “Even though it’s just a couple miles away, most of them don’t ever leave York. So for a lot of them, just being out of York is exciting,” said the club’s senior director, Rasheeda White.
“Then to throw the icing on the cake, to take a whole Thanksgiving Day meal home, when your family is potentially struggling, is an added blessing.”
Newton wants next year to hit the 2,000 mark.
“There’s probably a person here this year or next year who, 10 years from now, might be a politician, might be a sports star, might be an educator,” Cecil Newton said. “This might launch their belief system and expand their horizon about what life is really about. Sometimes you might be in the projects, but the projects don’t have to be in you.”