Atlanta Falcons icon Warrick Dunn, successful the maroon shirt, with members of the CDC, Atlanta Department of Health and members of the assemblage astatine Georgia State University’s Center Parc Stadium. (Photo Credit: Terry Shropshire/The Atlanta Voice)
Former Atlanta Falcons prima Warrick Dunn is astir arsenic celebrated for his philanthropy arsenic helium is for his shot exploits successful the National Football League (NFL).
Dunn, 46, teamed up with a radical of community-based organizations to advocator for the summation successful vaccination rates successful the Atlanta region. Collaboratively, these influential entities are helping to rise assurance successful the vaccinations and simultaneously dispel mistruths being wide propagated by immoderate anti-vaxxers. This effort is seen arsenic paramount arsenic COVID-19 has erstwhile again risen meteorically during the summertime of 2021, causing alarm among section and nationalist wellness officials.
On Monday, Aug. 30, Dunn and the NFL Alumni Association met up with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Fulton County Health Department’s Mobile Vaccination Clinic to big a escaped vaccine lawsuit astatine Georgia State University’s Center Parc Stadium.
The intent of the assemblage event, strategically hosted successful downtown Atlanta, was to further inculcate urbanites connected the value of getting vaccinated, supply nationalist work announcements and big section events specified arsenic this 1 with wellness connoisseurs.
Dunn, a three-time Pro Bowl selection, 1 of which came during his spectacular tenure arsenic the moving backmost for the Atlanta Falcons from 2002-2008, is present part-owner of the team. Through his leadership, officials anticipation that helium volition assistance Atlantans figuratively and virtually “Rise Up” and get extortion against the astir formidable communicable illness successful implicit 100 years.
“I don’t person a philosophy, per se, astir being progressive successful the community. It’s each astir helping others,” Dunn said humbly astir his philosophical outlook connected giving and contributing to the assemblage uplift. “This inaugural is astir educating the assemblage arsenic to wherefore they should get the vaccination and get implicit their hesitancy, to truly spot what their doctors person to say” astir getting inoculated.”
Former Falcons long-snapper Josh Harris said that the time was devoted to fellowship and amusive portion simultaneously helping officials supply a wellness payment to a ample swath of the populace who are not yet vaccinated.
“First and foremost, you know, we’re present to payment Atlanta, and we besides person the accidental for radical to get the changeable if they privation to beryllium vaccinated,” Harris told The Atlanta Voice. “Then you know, they tin instrumentality attraction of that portion they’re present arsenic well. But we’re conscionable present to bask the day, fellowship a small spot and play immoderate games.”
Harris met up with different ex-Falcons to bolster the efforts of the CDC and section wellness officials, including erstwhile antiaircraft extremity Mike Pitts, erstwhile antiaircraft tackle Andrew Provence, and Jason Webster, a erstwhile Falcons cornerback. The lawsuit featured a cornhole set-up, escaped luncheon from Chick-fil-A, wellness screenings and escaped COVID-19 vaccines.
Andrew Bolton, erstwhile RB for Detroit and Seattle and president of the NFL Alumni Georgia Chapter, conveyed the tremendous value of Atlantans getting immunization against a debilitating disease. He implored those who are hesitant to get the inoculation to consult with their physicians to alleviate the trepidations surrounding the vaccine.
“We are trying to travel unneurotic collectively arsenic neighbors, arsenic assemblage foundation organizations, and to effort to marque definite that radical are getting vaccinated. You know, it’s important that you get your shots,” Bolton said.
Dexter Davis, a erstwhile CB for the Falcons and Rams and existent squad chaplain for the Falcons, added that “getting folks vaccinated is adjacent and beloved to everybody’s heart. And we wanted to travel retired and adhd worth to our community.”
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