Hall of Fame running back Thurman Thomas poses with wife Patti at an event in Nashville, Tenn.
Thurman Thomas helped the Buffalo Bills rally to four Super Bowls in the early 1990s, and now he’s using his stature to help rally the community through a difficult time.
The Bills legend launched a viral fundraising campaign to help victims of the recent blizzard that crippled the city and has left more than three dozen people dead. As the Buffalo News reported, the Thurman Thomas Family Foundation raised $50,000 for storm relief efforts in less than 24 hours.
Thurman and wife Patti said they could see how the blizzard was much worse than the average winter storms that hit Buffalo every winter, and knew they needed to do whatever they could to help.
“We knew when people’s power was going off, and we had heard about the substations being frozen over, we knew the power was going to take a while to turn back on and people were going to need relief effort,” Patti Thomas told the Buffalo News, adding, “We got it started (Tuesday) and it’s been going really well. Obviously, Buffalo is full of so many great people and giving people, but we’re getting donations from friends, and people we don’t even know, all over the country.”
Thomas Gives Back
As the Buffalo News noted, the Thurman Thomas Family Foundation was founded in 2018 with a goal to help people in “challenging situations.” The foundation helped to raise more than $100,000 in the aftermath of the May shooting at a Tops grocery store, and is once again rallying the community to help those affected by the recent blizzard.
Many Bills fans have shared the fundraiser on social media, encouraging other fans to give what they can to aid the relief efforts. Officials said the immediate recovery efforts will continue for several days, and the death toll approached 40 on Wednesday as crews in the city of Buffalo began digging out streets that had been impassable since the storm first hit late last week.
The Thurman Thomas Family Foundation has worked in the Buffalo community, and helped people rebound. This snowstorm is no different.
Patti Thomas said the storm affected their family as well.
“Our reaction was … honestly, was we were terrified for people in our community here,” she told the Buffalo News. “It was really hard to smile. It was hard to get through our Christmas without crying. And my whole family was here. And I’m very thankful for that. Except two, like our two twin girls in the city that were without power and for three days. So, we were scared. Nobody could get to them.”
Charitable Bills Fans
The Buffalo Bills’ fanbase has gained a reputation for launching fundraising efforts, often to support opposing teams and players. The efforts began in 2017, with fans raising more than $442,000 for the Andy and Jordan Dalton Foundation after the Cincinnati Bengals quarterback led a last-second comeback over the Baltimore Ravens that allowed the Bills to reach the playoffs for the first time in 17 years.
Even rival players have benefitted from the charity of Bills fans. Earlier this year, more than 1,000 Bills fans made donations to Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s Tua Foundation after he suffered a concussion against the Bengals.
Tua shared his appreciation for Bills Mafia 💙
After the Bills defeated the Dolphins on December 17, Tagovailoa sent a message to Bills fans thanking them for the donations.
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Bills Legend Launches Viral Campaign to Help Buffalo Community