Deion Sanders will be remembered as the best defensive back to ever play in the NFL. Later this month, he will become the first Atlanta Falcons player to be inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame. But while Sanders made spectacular plays as an NFL player, he is now making plays off the field as a mentor to young males. Sanders recently sat down with rolling out sports and discussed his Truth Football Camp and life as a mentor. –amir shaw
You are doing amazing work with youth. What are the details of your Truth Camp?
We have a camp for kids ages 4-14. We have a day filled with activities, charges and change. At 8:30 a.m., we start them with the word of inspiration to encourage them. We give them one-on-one dynamics of football, we educate them in the classroom, and we educate on life skills. We feed them three times per day. We have buses and vans that pick them up from all over the Dallas area. These kids are able to learn so much.
The kids in your camp get to travel. Why is it important for kids to see life outside of their neighborhoods?
Traveling means exposure. It means looking outside of your walls. We have taken these kids all around the country. So, when they’re tempted by drug dealers or young women, they are not captured because they have a goal. They know focus and dedication will get them to that goal. Traveling exposes them and their parents. The parents get to see things, and they dream and reinvest in their kids. We have stopped investing in our kids. I hate when I see a parent with 24-inch rims on their car and the kids with run-down shoes. Invest in your kids, and they will invest in you.
How has fatherhood changed you?
When you see a great father, a lot of times you see a guy who wasn’t fathered. He doesn’t want to perpetuate the cycle of absent fathers and the pain he had as a child. I had wonderful fathers. My stepdad was there for me, but he was an alcoholic. My biological father was my biggest fan, but he was a drug addict. I never tried drugs or alcohol. I stopped using profanity in college. I learned from them that I never wanted to do those things. I never heard the words, “I love you” from a man. So, being a father means so much. That’s why we shower these kids with love and give them the most precious thing you can’t get back. Time.
