The New Orleans Saints have had the most pronounced effect on the Louisiana community. In addition to many, if not all, players contributing to the local charities (which is another overlooked ‘good’ aspect of sports; what they give back to the community), the team flourished around their ‘new’ area. Amazingly, the team completed a 180 degree turn in direction. In doing so, the team helped to rebuild the ailing community (technically, below; and in spirits) by allowing the local people to participate in a much-needed diversion, an escape made possible from the bleak reality.
When approached by the New Orleans Saints, after a very successful season in San Diego, quarterback Drew Brees said the following in an article titled, “In Katrina’s wake, Brees joins Saints”:
“The Saints were not afraid to show me those (bad) things (Katrina effects. They just said, 'Listen, this is where we're at, and you have the opportunity to be a guy who can be instrumental in this rebuilding process and that sort of thing.' I took that as a great responsibility and I really kind of longed to be that guy – not only the quarterback of this football team, but a guy in a community who could make an impact.”
Along the way, he provided distraction and inspiration to fans in need, leading the Saints, just 17 months after Katrina's unprecedented Aug. 29, 2005 devastation.
Brees' and coach Sean Payton's Saints have embraced their relationship with their stricken city, serving as psychological repairmen.
“I’ve never been part of a team where we've had so many guys willing to help with another guy's charity event," Brees says.
Brees helped Habitat for Humanity rebuild homes in the Upper Ninth Ward's Musicians Village in May, visited Kuwait on a USO Tour, hosted a fishing expedition for 31 kids fighting cancer, and even visited a Utah prison of his own volition, giving two motivational speeches to inmates about making the most of a second chance.
"To get people to come back to New Orleans, we need leadership, integrity, and a plan. We're trying to provide all these things.”
The Saints get something in return from their profound bond with New Orleans. They're empowered by a feeling of, "What's a two-touchdown deficit when the people rooting you on have suffered real loss and, in some cases, return home to a FEMA trailer?"
“People don't have the money to buy things,” Brees said. “Yet they find a way to get season tickets. It just shows the hope, belief and faith they're investing in the Saints. When you hear that, you just want to reward them."
--Jim Trotter, San Diego Union-Tribume
The Saints were 3-13 in 2005, and later that year, in the offseason, Katrina struck. The following season, perhaps not coincidentally, in spite of their home city’s state, the Saints went 10-6, going from the cellar of the entire league right to the top winning the division title. The Saints went on to come within one win of playing in the Super Bowl, accomplishing something far greater than football; they contributed to the rebuilding of a torn city in ways that nothing else could.
In this case, it is almost as if karma has a significant role in the processes of rebuilding. The team helped out the area; is the area now helping out the team?
How much of this is natural progression, and how much of it is ‘special’ progress cannot be accounted for.
What can this be attributed to?
It is very odd, if nothing else.
Sports save us, and perhaps karma was getting even in the winning of the NFC South division.
Sources:
Armstrong, S. (2007, March 2). Soccer: Can it Save the world?. The Reflector (Mississippi State University). Retrieved February 17, 2008 from http://media.www.reflector-online.com/media/storage/paper938/news/2007/03/02/Sports/Soccer.Can.It.Save.The.World-2753100.shtml
Lemire, J. “The Healing Power of Football.” Sports Illustrated, 31 Dec. 2007: Pg. 77
McGarr, E. “The Healing Power of Football.” Sports Illustrated 31 Dec. 2007:
Pg. 77
Trotter, J. (2006, July 26). In Katrina’s wake, Brees joins Saints. San Diego Union-
Tribune. Retrieved February 18, 2008 from:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20060729/news_1s29brees.html
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