For the Los Angeles Chargers, giving back has no offseason. Several Chargers players have recently been serving people who need it most.
Bolts safety Derwin James partnered with Wallis Annenberg GenSpace to host his first ever Derwin’s Disco, a 70’s-themed dance party for senior citizens and retirees. James joined in on the fun, dancing with attendees, over 120 in attendance. The event not only promoted fellowship and social connectivity, but physical fitness.
Earlier this month, the All-Pro safety James, along with linebacker Nick Niemann, participated in a meditation session with 40 breast cancer patients and survivors. The event was done in partnership with Chargers owner Dean Spanos’ wife Susie and Hoag Family Cancer Initiative. Susie is a breast cancer survivor.
The event was done in accordance with Breast Cancer Awareness Month and the NFL Crucial Catch Initiative.
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“Being able to get those mental breaks and releasing the mind and doing the breathing techniques with breath work offered today, it was amazing for me too,” James said. “Crucial Catch is early screening, early detection and using your resources around you to get the help that you may not know you needed.”
In September, Bolts defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day visited 122nd Street Elementary School in Los Angeles to give out over 600 bags of nonperishable food items. Each bag has enough food to last a student for the weekend.
Teammates, including safety JT Woods and defensive back Ja’Sir Taylor, and Bolts Community Crew volunteers helped Joseph-Day pack the bags.
“My parents both come from the country of Haiti. I remember growing up, they always send these tubs of jars of food back to Haiti for friends and family,” Joseph-Day said. “I’ve always been taught by them [to] always use my blessing to be a blessing.”
Prior to the start of the season, the Chargers Impact Fund partnered with Boys & Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles to start two learning programs for elementary and middle school students. The program was created to help youth with their language skills and encourage them to take on reading as a hobby.
Bolts corner Michael Davis and James visited the Watts/Willowbrook Boys & Girls Club to celebrate the launch. They conducted a reading session to promote Bolts Book Club, a program created to improve youth literacy by encouraging them to read 20 minutes a day.
“A lot of our kids don’t believe that players and people of certain levels care about these communities and this is a huge game changer,” said Boys & Girls Club of Metro Los Angeles vice president of resource and development Kim Washington. “Every time players come to our club, they provide help for our kids and they actually lead the way.”
Davis and James also helped youth create a rap song with Rhymes with Reason, a digital platform that improves language and vocabulary skills through music.
“We got a platform and we have influence,” James said. “I feel like people should always use their influence in a positive way.”
