Browns to host the inaugural Special Olympics Ohio Unified Sports uniform reveal and Play Football! Clinic (9.23.19)
Remember to follow @BrownsGiveBack for the latest Browns community news, photos and more.
Browns media advisory – Browns to host the inaugural Special Olympics Ohio Unified Sports uniform reveal and Play Football! Clinic
*WHO: Cleveland Browns QB Baker Mayfield, DT Brandin Bryant and C Willie Wright
*WHEN: Tuesday, Sept. 24
11 a.m.-noon
WHERE: Case Coleman Fieldhouse
Cleveland Browns Training and Administrative Complex
76 Lou Groza Boulevard
Berea, Ohio 44017
WHAT: As part of Browns Give Back’s commitment to youth and high school football, the Browns will host high school Unified Sports flag football athletes, coaches and volunteers for the inaugural Cleveland Browns Special Olympics Ohio uniform reveal and Play Football! Clinic.
The Browns have partnered with Special Olympics Ohio to create the first NFL sponsored Unified Sports League. The league will consist of seven Northeast Ohio high schools – Max Hayes, Lincoln West, John Marshall, Lorain, Avon, Rocky River and Avon Lake. Athletes and coaches from these schools will first reveal their new uniforms and then have a youth football clinic with Browns staff members and players who are volunteering through the First and Ten movement.
Recently, Special Olympics Ohio received a $5,000 Browns PLAY! 60 grant toward launching the Unified Flag Football initiative in Northeast Ohio. Through the partnership, athletes and Unified Partners from local high schools will participate in this year’s pilot program, which will provide opportunities for students with and without disabilities to play football on the same team.
Unified Sports is an inclusive sports program that unites Special Olympics athletes (individuals with intellectual disabilities) and partners (individuals without intellectual disabilities) as teammates for training and competition.
The Browns First and Ten initiative will be active throughout the event as volunteers from all of the participating organizations, including University Hospitals staff members, #give10 to help create special memories for Special Olympics guests.
Gatorade will also help keep all athletes and volunteers hydrated throughout the festivities.
Through Browns Give Back, the Cleveland Browns are dedicated to #give10 through the team’s First and Ten initiative. Launched in June 2014, the Cleveland Browns First and Ten campaign is the team’s community program, established to inspire fans to volunteer in and help their communities throughout the world by volunteering for 10 hours each year. Through First and Ten, the Browns are the only NFL club to promote a long-term volunteering program that unifies the team and its entire fan base, with the goal of impacting every individual’s city across the globe, as well as the franchise’s local community. All Browns fans are encouraged to join the volunteering effort by signing the First and Ten pledge on the team’s website and by sharing their stories with #give10. For more information or to sign the pledge, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback..
About the Cleveland Browns and Browns Give Back:
The Browns Give Back to Northeast Ohio with a commitment to education and youth football while engaging the community through the team’s signature First and Ten volunteer movement. For more information, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback.
Education – The Cleveland Browns are dedicated to improving the quality of education for students in Ohio by making investments that keep kids in school every day so they can succeed, highlighted by the “Get 2 School, Stay in the Game!” Network. The “Get 2 School” Network is a statewide initiative designed to promote the importance of school attendance and put an end to chronic absenteeism. The team engages local schools and promotes quality education by using attendance data and feedback from families to build a school-going culture, uncover and reduce common barriers to attendance and support engagement opportunities for students to thrive. To learn more, visit Get2School.org.
Youth Football – The Cleveland Browns are committed to assisting the development, safety and growth of youth and high school football throughout Northeast Ohio with year-round programming for players, coaches, officials and parents. Through camps, clinics and other initiatives, the Browns’ goal is to promote healthy, social, emotional, intellectual and physical development of youth by enhancing opportunities for youth football participation and education.
First and Ten – Launched in June 2014, the Cleveland Browns First and Ten campaign is the team’s community program, established to inspire fans to #give10 and help their communities by volunteering for 10 hours each year. Through First and Ten, the Browns are the only NFL club to promote a long-term volunteering program that unifies the team and its entire fan base, with the goal of impacting every individual’s city across the globe, as well as the franchise’s local community. To date, more than 2 million hours of volunteering have been pledged through First and Ten. All Browns fans are encouraged to join the volunteering effort by signing the First and Ten pledge on the team’s website and by sharing their stories with #give10.
Boys Hope Girls Hope provides long term support to high-possibility, at-risk youth through intensive out-of-school-time programs from middle school through career. The program, which was founded in 1986, serves nearly 200 children from throughout Cleveland and Akron, including up to 20 residents who live in one of the program’s three family-like homes.
*Time and personnel subject to change