Robert Craft gave Jarheads $100,000 hugs

Robert Kraft Pledges $100,000 To Families Of Motorcyclists Killed In NH Crash

CBS News Boston
July 13. 2019

“I know you have a GoFundMe page and it said you’re looking to raise 700 (thousand dollars) and you’re somewhere near $560,000, so our family, we’re going to commit $100,000 to that,” Kraft said.

The crowd erupted in cheers.

“And if you don’t get to the 700 today, we’re making it up whatever it is,” the Patriots owner said. “We are all Patriots and you are the true Patriots.”

FOXBORO (CBS/AP) — New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft made a surprise announcement Saturday, as he pledged to donate $100,000 to the families of seven motorcyclists killed in a tragic crash in New Hampshire last month.

More than a thousand bikers came from across the country to Gillette Stadium in Foxboro to celebrate the lives of the men and women who were killed when a pickup truck and trailer crashed into a group of motorcycles in Randolph, New Hampshire on June 21. They were members or supporters of the Jarheads, a New England motorcycle club that includes Marines and their spouses.

Kraft met the group in the parking lot for the event Saturday, which raised money for the families of the victims. When he got up on stage to address the crowd, he made this surprise announcement.
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Marine MP Led Patriots Onto Field

Maine veteran experiences thrill of carrying flag at Patriots opener

Bangor Daily News
Ryan McLaughlin
September 9, 2017

Like a lot of New England Patriots fans from Fort Kent to Stamford, Connecticut, Michael Flanagan was hoping for a different outcome than the shocking one the Kansas City Chiefs served up on Thursday night.

Contributed Photo | BDN

Sanford native Michael Flanagan poses with New England Patriots mascot Pat Patriot at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, Thursday evening. Flanagan, a U.S. Marine veteran, led the Patriots onto the field prior to their game carrying a U.S. flag.

But the Sanford native and 18-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps experienced a thrill that made the final score somewhat irrelevant.

Flanagan, who is currently stationed with the Navy’s ROTC program at the University of Maine, was one of four military personnel selected to lead the Patriots onto the field carrying a U.S. flag. The longtime Patriots fan was chosen to represent the Marines for Thursday’s season-opener, which featured a speech from actor Mark Wahlberg and the unveiling of the Patriots’ fifth championship banner.

“It was a once in a lifetime opportunity” said Flanagan, who has enjoyed multiple jobs in the Marines but most of his service has been as a Military Police officer.

He did two tours in Iraq as a military officer, and went back to the University of Mississippi to earn a law enforcement degree and remained in the military police field.
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Troops in Afghanistan Super Bowl Party 5,000 Pizzas

Chicago charity sending 5,000 pizzas to troops in Afghanistan
By The Associated Press
February 1, 2015

CHICAGO (AP) — Make it 5,000 pizzas to go please.

And so it will be that the roughly 11,000 U.S. troops left in Afghanistan will get a slice of home for Super Bowl Sunday.

Pizzas4Patriots.com is teaming with Rich Foods and DHL to send 5,000 pies to American service members across Afghanistan.
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Super Bowl Shoutout to Troops
℠2015 - The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks face off in Super Bowl XLIX and players from both sides express their appreciation for the troops.

Patriots to honor veterans and active duty military at Broncos game

Patriots to honor veterans and active duty military at Broncos game
New England Patriots
Posted Nov 23, 2013

Veterans and active military members will be honored in pregame flag ceremony, with several in game tributes from soldiers, and members of the New England Patriots organization.

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Patriots will thank and honor veterans and active duty military members with several initiatives at Gillette Stadium in their night game against the Denver Broncos on Sunday, Nov. 24. The activities are in recognition of Veteran’s Day and a part of the Patriots Charitable Foundation's month-long Salute to Service and "Veteran and Military Volunteerism" in conjunction with the team’s ongoing Celebrate Volunteerism initiative.

"I consider our veterans and active duty soldiers as the true unsung heroes of our country," said Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft. "We look forward to honoring our military Sunday night with a Salute to Service that will include representatives from each branch of military. It’s always great to give Patriots fans an opportunity to show their appreciation to these real Patriots."

In a pregame ceremony, the Pats will unfurl a 100-yard flag that covers the entire field. Members of the Patriots organization along with150 veterans and active military members, including Raytheon guests from Wounded Warriors and Student Veterans of America, will hold the flag during the ceremony. Three Army National Guard servicemen will lead the team from the tunnel carrying American flags.

The National Anthem will be sung by Army National Guard Major Jerome “Scott" Loring. Major Loring is a New Hampshire Army National Guardsman with more than 29 years of service. He is currently serving on active duty with the Army National Guard's Operation team at the Army's Cadet Command Headquarters in Fort Knox, KY.

Patriots tackle Nate Solder’s father, Ed, will serve as an honorary captain and participate in the pregame coin toss. Ed is a Naval Academy graduate and served in the Navy for 13 years, including a tour of duty in Vietnam as a helicopter and jet pilot.

During the game, all service men and women will be asked to stand and be recognized. Messages from military members serving overseas will be played on the video boards. Throughout the game there will be live look-ins of a group of military watching and cheering on the Patriots from Afghanistan, as well as several messages recorded by Patriots players thanking the service men and women for their service.

In a special ceremony, the Patriots will honor United States Army Staff Sergeant Travis Mills of the 82nd Airborne, who was injured during his tour of duty in Afghanistan. He is one of only five quadruple amputees from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to survive his injuries. At the end of the first quarter, there will be a video trailer of his documentary entitled, Travis Mills, A Soldier’s Story.

Mills we be introduced and walk onto the field with his family once the trailer concludes. Sunday’s game is the culmination of the Patriots Charitable Foundation’s month-long focus on veteran and military volunteerism. The Foundation works in cooperation with organizations that support community outreach for veterans and members of the armed services.
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More than 500 Volunteers Join Rebuilding Together Boston

More than 500 Volunteers Join Rebuilding Together Boston to Renovate Homes and Non-Profit Facilities on National Rebuilding Day

April 28, 2012
BOSTON
PRNewswire via COMTEX/ -- Volunteers, including New England Patriots employees and alumni and an all women skilled tradesperson team, are repairing homes and renovating housing for formerly homeless veterans, women and children at nine sites across the City.

Today, Rebuilding Together Boston (RTB), an affiliate of Rebuilding Together, the nation's leading nonprofit working to preserve affordable housing and revitalize communities, is engaging more than 500 local volunteers and civic leaders to rehabilitate six homes in Mattapan, Dorchester and Roxbury; Pine Street Inn Veterans' housing and a residence for formerly homeless women, and the Nazareth Residence for Mothers and Children on National Rebuilding Day.

This work is made possible by the generosity of sponsors: Bank of America, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Booz Allen Hamilton, Bullhorn, Fairway Independent Mortgage Corporation, Gilbane Building Company, Grand Circle Corporation, the Jacobs family, Mirassou Winery, Sears Holdings and Starbucks. Also, the Home Depot Foundation made a generous community impact grant to Rebuilding Together Boston for the donation of supplies to support the renovation work on National Rebuilding Day.

Projects this year include the renovation of an 89-year old widow's home by an all women crew who are providing plumbing, electricity, and carpentry services at her home in Mattapan where she has resided in for more than 40 years and has cared for her grandson who has cerebral palsy.

Also, volunteers will be working on several other projects including providing home modifications and energy-efficiency upgrades for a World War II Veteran and his wife. RTB volunteers will complete needed repairs in the basement; reconstruct the front porch with new windows and paint; repair the railing and lattice work on the back porch and paint; install a new walkway from the driveway to back yard; install drainage for down spouts; and make any needed home modifications for the couple to ensure safety.

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Dead athletes' brains show damage from concussions

Dead athletes' brains show damage from concussions
Story Highlights
Damage from repeated concussions is called chronic traumatic encephalopathy

Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy studies brains from dead athletes

Far from innocuous, concussions can lead to tremendous brain damage

Symptoms can include depression, sleep disorders, headaches


By Stephanie Smith
CNN Medical Producer
(CNN) -- For years after his NFL career ended, Ted Johnson could barely muster the energy to leave his house.


"I'd [leave to] go see my kids for maybe 15 minutes," said Johnson. "Then I would go back home and close the curtains, turn the lights off and I'd stay in bed. That was my routine for two years.

"Those were bad days."

These days, the former linebacker is less likely to recount the hundreds of tackles, scores of quarterback sacks or the three Super Bowl rings he earned as a linebacker for the New England Patriots. He is more likely to talk about suffering more than 100 concussions.

"I can definitely point to 2002 when I got back-to-back concussions. That's where the problems started," said Johnson, who retired after those two concussions. "The depression, the sleep disorders and the mental fatigue."

Until recently, the best medical definition for concussion was a jarring blow to the head that temporarily stunned the senses, occasionally leading to unconsciousness. It has been considered an invisible injury, impossible to test -- no MRI, no CT scan can detect it.

But today, using tissue from retired NFL athletes culled posthumously, the Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy (CSTE) is shedding light on what concussions look like in the brain. The findings are stunning. Far from innocuous, invisible injuries, concussions confer tremendous brain damage. That damage has a name: chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).

CTE has thus far been found in the brains of five out of five former NFL players. On Tuesday afternoon, researchers at the CSTE will release study results from the sixth NFL player exhibiting the same kind of damage.
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