Carolina Panthers legend Julius Peppers continues to give back
The Carolina Panthers legend continues to be an active member in the community.
He may no longer be officially on the Carolina Panthers active roster, but that did not stop Julius Peppers from being an active member in the community.
In what was a tremendous year of community service for the defensive end, Peppers hosted a formal sneaker ball last Thursday at the Harvey B. Gantt Center. The ball was in support of the three charities that Peppers assisted. For his efforts, he was recognized as Carolina’s 2018 NFL Man of the Year nominee.
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The event just exemplified what made Julius Peppers a great member of the Carolina community. Yes, he was a great football player, that cannot be ignored. However, his community service endeavors throughout his time with the Panthers were really something special. He always made sure to give back to the community and my guess is that he will continue to do so for a region that has meant so much to him.
The three charitable organizations that the Gala supported were the Young Black Leadership Alliance, The Girl Talk Foundation, and the Center for Community Transitions. Peppers went into detail about why he supported those specific organizations, and in reading his responses, you can tell just how much those organizations mean to him.
It seemed fitting in a way to have this event, both as a recognition to his charitable causes and for Peppers as an active member in the community. Make no mistake, this event was not about him at all. This was about his causes. However, this fantastic event meshed well with Peppers stature in the Carolina community: someone who is kind and yet larger-than-life. It certainly is a great event as the future Hall-of-Famer adjusts to his new life off the field. My guess is that there will be a lot more downtime than there used to be.
"“I’m excited. All this stuff started out with the hurricane relief fund,” Peppers said just before the party began. “We decided to do a charity ball for All-Star Weekend with the spotlight on the city of Charlotte and we wanted to celebrate as well.“It’s great to go out and have a good time and also have it benefit a good cause. That means a lot.”"
There is no doubt he will remain a beloved figure in the Carolina community. If his retirement life is anything like his accomplished and successful football career, he is sure to be busy.