Several members of the Denver Broncos, including Von Miller, have announced a donation of $200,000 to Denver-area law enforcement and first responders. The stated goal of the donation is to provide additional aid to emergency services and to further improve the relationship between law enforcement and the community.
The money will be split between providing gear for first responders in the event of a mass shooting as well as create programs that encourage improved relations between law enforcement and the Denver community.
The Denver area has been particularly hit with unfortunate situations in the past. Both the Columbine school shooting and the Aurora movie theater shooting took place in the greater Denver metro area.
Efforts by the NFL to help in this specific area came to the forefront with the controversy surrounding Colin Kaepernick. Though the former 49ers quarterback has proven to be highly polarizing, if it helped in any way jumpstart donations of this type, then some good came out of it.
When the donation announcement took place, the Broncos star linebacker offered the following quote:
“When I heard there’s been more than 300 mass shootings in the last year alone, I felt like we needed to do something for those who protect us … I hope that we can all help bridge the gap and work to improve relationships with law enforcement in our communities.”
Members of NFL teams where tragedy has struck have been particularly productive in their giving to the community. Players from the Cleveland Browns and Miami Dolphins have shown to take a truly encouraging stock in the well-being of their community.
Though this action rises above football, the Broncos sit at 5-6, good for third place in the AFC West. Despite losing six of seven games at one point, they’re still very much alive in the AFC playoff picture.
