A message of sanctification through sport was on display Friday, when dozens of kids gathered with Buffalo Bills alumni and the Buffalo Police Athletic League at the Hennepin Senior Center in Buffalo for the fourth annual Alumni Legends NFL Flag Football Camp.
The youth performed drills, learned football terminology, proper stretching and warming up, character growth, and how to interact with law enforcement.
Former Bills wide receiver Jerry Butler emphasized the importance of vision, which was this year's camp theme.
"Biblically speaking, if you live a life without a vision, you will perish," Butler said. "I think God wants us to have a vision about everything that we do, even at a young age. I'm out here to try to light that match to inspire them."
He shared a story when he received a motivating message at church and went on to achieve a vision for his late mother, who passed away from breast cancer.
"The minister had a message, and I thought he was talking to me, and it was basically, you know, get up and start walking and start trying, and I did. I got up," said Butler.
Inspired, he asked his mother what she wanted in life. Her response: "She says, 'I want a white house on a hill.'"
"So, long story short, I became a draft pick for the Buffalo Bills out of Clemson University," Butler said, "and the first thing I was able to find was a white house on a hill, and I bought that home for my mother and my family, and moved them in there until she passed away."
On top of vision, taking advantage of time is another principle Butler wanted the kids to take away from camp.
"God gives us all equality in 24 hours, seven days a week. He doesn't cheat anybody out of that. But what you choose to do with those 24 hours and seven days a week — that's totally left up to you," he said. "I'm trying to get them to understand that you have value in time — it's a commodity."
Among the other Bills alumni on hand was former Buffalo safety Mark Kelso, who shared the importance of stewarding your blessings to be a blessing to others.
"When you're given gifts, you have an opportunity, I think, and a responsibility to give back, and I think that's what it's all about," he said. "There's lots of different ways you can invest in your community."
Also participating was Mark Schmidt, a University at Buffalo grad who spent time with the Detroit Lions.
Schmidt told BTPM News he didn't start playing football until his junior year of high school. For him, the vision came later. Through the ups and downs in life, he said one thing he wanted to pass on to the kids is the ability to persevere through difficult times and try to enjoy the journey itself.
"When you fail, and we all get knocked down, it's how you get up, and that's a real true test of you know who you are," he said. "Not just as a professional athlete, but in every job that we do. We all make mistakes, we all fall, we all have some issues along the way. It's how we pick ourselves up. You've got to have that perseverance."
Additional Bills alumni on hand: Ken Jones, Joe Bock, Jeff Nixon, Lou Piccone.
