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http://www.tricities.com/tri/sports/professional/article/wiitens_way_of_change/22869/
By Jim Cnockaert
Sports Editor / Bristol Herald Courier
Published: April 11, 2009
ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. – Jason Witten smiled as he made his way around the Boys and Girls Club of Elizabethton.
“I have a lot of great memories from here,” Witten said. “This place will always be near and dear to my heart.”
The funny thing is, the one memory that immediately jumps to Witten’s mind is a rare not-so-nice one.
Witten was 12 years old when his family moved to town, and, because his grandfather was the coach of the club’s football team, everyone expected he’d be a star. That eventually happened – he starred at the University of Tennessee and a five-time Pro Bowl tight end for the Dallas Cowboys – but it didn’t that season.
He was too big to make the local team’s weight limit, so his mom had to take him to Johnson City to play.
“I’m not even sure what that weight limit was, but I was a chubby kid,” Witten said, quickly adding: “But if that [limit] is still in place, we have to do something to get it changed.”
Witten was back in his hometown on Friday to dedicate a more immediate change, one that only nominally is connected with football. It is a change that, he said, makes the club a whole lot better place than it was when he was a frequent visitor.
Witten’s “Score Foundation” provided the funds to purchase 10 new computers that are the hub of the club’s new “Jason Witten Learning Center.” But that donation was matched by materials and volunteer hours from the community. The result: a computer room and an adjacent recreation room that boast Dallas Cowboys motifs and contain much Witten memorabilia.
“We did a similar thing with the club in Dallas, but, with all due respect to that one, this is amazing,” Witten said. “You’ve all done a great job of setting this up.”
This isn’t the first time Witten has given something back to his old stomping grounds – he annually returns to Northeast Tennessee to put on his summer football camp, scheduled this year on June 27 – but he made it clear on Friday that donating the money for the learning center was not some sort of publicity ploy.
“This was not just to come out and show my face,” he said. “As a professional athlete, I have a huge platform as a role model, but I never forget where I came from.
“This is something I hope the kids can take and have fun and enjoy. There are a lot of neat things they can do. Even bigger, I hope it is something they can use in their lives to help them move forward and reach their dreams. That’s probably not going to be football. That’s why we have a bunch of computers.”
Not surprisingly, given that many of the folks who attended Friday’s dedication were wearing a replica of his Dallas jersey, talk soon turned to the Cowboys and the outlook for the 2009 season. The
Cowboys moved into their new stadium this fall, and Witten said he is excited to be able to help write a new chapter in the team’s storied history.
“We hope a lot of good things follow, but we’re still disappointed about not making the playoffs,” he said. “We’re all humbled by what happened in our last game. When you get beat 44-6 by one of your rivals, there is a lot of looking at yourself in the mirror. We have a lot of challenges to get better. Part of your challenge as a leader is to play better and to help the other guys play better.”
Witten said repeatedly that he considers it is a privilege to return home and give back to the community that helped to raise him. But that is an attitude he takes with him everywhere, he said.
“I played basketball and baseball here,” he recalled. “I was always around, and it was something my family was always involved in.
“But my foundation is much bigger than this. It is reaching kids around the country. When my wife and I formed this, we never knew what kind of results we would have. This is just a glimpse of what it’s all about.”
By Jim Cnockaert
Sports Editor / Bristol Herald Courier
Published: April 11, 2009
ELIZABETHTON, Tenn. – Jason Witten smiled as he made his way around the Boys and Girls Club of Elizabethton.
“I have a lot of great memories from here,” Witten said. “This place will always be near and dear to my heart.”
The funny thing is, the one memory that immediately jumps to Witten’s mind is a rare not-so-nice one.
Witten was 12 years old when his family moved to town, and, because his grandfather was the coach of the club’s football team, everyone expected he’d be a star. That eventually happened – he starred at the University of Tennessee and a five-time Pro Bowl tight end for the Dallas Cowboys – but it didn’t that season.
He was too big to make the local team’s weight limit, so his mom had to take him to Johnson City to play.
“I’m not even sure what that weight limit was, but I was a chubby kid,” Witten said, quickly adding: “But if that [limit] is still in place, we have to do something to get it changed.”
Witten was back in his hometown on Friday to dedicate a more immediate change, one that only nominally is connected with football. It is a change that, he said, makes the club a whole lot better place than it was when he was a frequent visitor.
Witten’s “Score Foundation” provided the funds to purchase 10 new computers that are the hub of the club’s new “Jason Witten Learning Center.” But that donation was matched by materials and volunteer hours from the community. The result: a computer room and an adjacent recreation room that boast Dallas Cowboys motifs and contain much Witten memorabilia.
“We did a similar thing with the club in Dallas, but, with all due respect to that one, this is amazing,” Witten said. “You’ve all done a great job of setting this up.”
This isn’t the first time Witten has given something back to his old stomping grounds – he annually returns to Northeast Tennessee to put on his summer football camp, scheduled this year on June 27 – but he made it clear on Friday that donating the money for the learning center was not some sort of publicity ploy.
“This was not just to come out and show my face,” he said. “As a professional athlete, I have a huge platform as a role model, but I never forget where I came from.
“This is something I hope the kids can take and have fun and enjoy. There are a lot of neat things they can do. Even bigger, I hope it is something they can use in their lives to help them move forward and reach their dreams. That’s probably not going to be football. That’s why we have a bunch of computers.”
Not surprisingly, given that many of the folks who attended Friday’s dedication were wearing a replica of his Dallas jersey, talk soon turned to the Cowboys and the outlook for the 2009 season. The
Cowboys moved into their new stadium this fall, and Witten said he is excited to be able to help write a new chapter in the team’s storied history.
“We hope a lot of good things follow, but we’re still disappointed about not making the playoffs,” he said. “We’re all humbled by what happened in our last game. When you get beat 44-6 by one of your rivals, there is a lot of looking at yourself in the mirror. We have a lot of challenges to get better. Part of your challenge as a leader is to play better and to help the other guys play better.”
Witten said repeatedly that he considers it is a privilege to return home and give back to the community that helped to raise him. But that is an attitude he takes with him everywhere, he said.
“I played basketball and baseball here,” he recalled. “I was always around, and it was something my family was always involved in.
“But my foundation is much bigger than this. It is reaching kids around the country. When my wife and I formed this, we never knew what kind of results we would have. This is just a glimpse of what it’s all about.”
