NFLPA & SSH Spread Message of Respect Through Spoken Word

RESPECT in Sport. RESPECT in Life. This was the message shared with youth who participated in two free NFLPA football camps held in Chicago and Houston this summer.

Recognizing the principle of RESPECT as an important value for young people to personify in Sport and Life, the NFL Players Association (NFLPA) and Sport at the Service of Humanity (SSH) collaborated to share this message through a compelling Spoken Word poem “My Coach Taught Me”. Created and performed by award-winning Spoken Word Artist, Patrick De Belen, the poem highlights the fundamental importance of RESPECT and reminds players to LiveLikeYouPlay.

Spoken Word Performance Opens Chicago NFLPA Camp

On Saturday, July 20th, Patrick opened the NFLPA Youth Football Camp hosted by Chicago Bears’ Roy Robertson-Harris with a live performance of his piece:

“Hello! My name is Patrick de Belen. I’m a local spoken word poet from Toronto, Canada and a representative of Sport at the Service of Humanity. Sport at the Service of Humanity is a global initiative that promotes the importance of Values in Sport and Life!

These values include – Compassion, Love, Enlightenment, Balance, Joy and Respect. I’m here today to talk about one of our core values – Respect.

It’s been a few years since I’ve played, but I learned a lot about life through football. So thank you for the opportunity to tell this story.”
— PATRICK DE BELEN

https://youtube.com/watch?v=kvxh3tP12bs%2520frameborder%3D0%2520allow%3Daccelerometer%3B%2520autoplay%3B%2520encrypted-media%3B%2520gyroscope%3B%2520picture-in-picture%2520allowfullscreen

For read more about Patrick, click here.

Spoken Word Performance a Success

Roy Robertson-Harris, defensive end for the Chicago Bears, who hosted the Chicago Camp had this to say following the performance:

“At my camp this year I wanted to do something different to impact my campers and when the opportunity came up to have Patrick come and speak, I didn’t even think twice. We received so much positive feedback from his performance and the kids left my camp that day truly inspired.”
— ROY ROBERTSON-HARRIS

The inspiration continued on July 21st, when “My Coach Taught Me” was performed at the Houston Camp Co- hosted by Ronald Ollie, defensive tackle for the Oakland Raiders, and Justin Allen who is the Owner of All-En Sports Performance.

Following Patrick’s performance, Ronald Ollie had this to say:

“To create an environment for the youth where they are able to have fun while learning core values is my goal. Justin Allen, who is my mentor, trainer, and athletic adviser, shared the same vision. So, we decided to host a football camp. Having Patrick perform at our camp was more than we expected. He executed our vision perfectly. He was inspirational, determined, and most of all he spoke on the importance of values in sports. I believe we were all able to take something away from his performance.”
— RONALD OLLIE

Through spoken word, Sport at the Service of Humanity’s message of RESPECT in Sport and in Life was made relevant and identifiable to youth participating at the NFLPA football camps.

As we continue to grow the SSH Movement and share the values of our Six Principles – COMPASSION, RESPECT, LOVE, ENLIGHTENMENT, BALANCE, JOY – we look forward to finding more opportunities to create relevance and connections with different audiences throughout the world.