The Houston Texans are among the top 16 organizations chosen as a finalist for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Sports Award, the foundation announced today. The Texans Foundation was selected out of a pool of 130 applicants across all professional sports from around the United States and Canada.
"We are honored and humbled to be chosen as a finalist for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Sports Award," Houston Texans President Jamey Rootes said. "The Houston Texans Foundation is committed and dedicated to being champions for our youth and to making the Houston community a healthy and safe environment to live and work. We plan to continue this mission, established by the McNair Family, with our three integral partners, including the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston, the Houston Texans YMCA and the Houston Food Bank."
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Sports Award recognizes organizations that take an innovative and collaborative approach to inspire healthier communities through sports. The Foundation focuses on helping children lead better lives through teaching them the importance of maintaining a healthy weight, creating safe play environments, eliminating bullying, abuse and violence and growing opportunities for children living in poverty.
Since its inception in 2002, the Houston Texans Foundation has donated more than $27.2 million to the Houston community, implementing strategic methods and programs to help thousands of families in need. Through annual fundraising efforts, disaster response programs and the United Way campaign, the foundation supports and administers programs in education, character development and health and fitness to empower the next generation of youth.
In 2008, the Texans pioneered a unique strategy within the NFL, adopting three community partners to make the biggest impact possible. The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Houston, the YMCA of Greater Houston, and the Houston Food Bank were selected and deep relationships have been formed with each. The Houston Texans Foundation has become a top-5 donor to the Boys & Girls Clubs and the top donor among all four professional sports teams in Houston. The foundation has also launched the first Teen Club in the country sponsored by an NFL franchise, created the first YMCA named after a team and become the No. 1 per-capita donator to the United Way in Houston and the No. 1 giver across all 32 NFL teams.
The winners of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Award will be announced in September.
