As Patrick Sanchez, 19, was sleeping on a cold New Jersey football field each night, he didn't have much in his possession except a bag and a deeply-seeded belief that with enough hard work, he could play college football, if only given the chance. The teen was raised by disabled parents and often worked two jobs to help put food [...]
Oakland A's prospect Jesus Luzardo hasn't hit the major leagues yet, but he's already making large-scale moves using the platform he has. The left-handed pitcher and 2016 graduate of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida has started a YouCaring page to raise money for the family of Chris Hixon, the brave 49-year-old athletic director and wrestling coach who [...]
As the girls' basketball team manager at Camden Catholic High School in New Jersey, Kate Spadaro has put in some serious work over the past four years. Because of her commitment to helping the team run like a well-oiled machine, the senior with Down syndrome was rewarded with an incredible experience: Stepping onto the court as a starter. Wearing No. [...]
Chicago Cubs first baseman and 2007 graduate of Stoneman Douglas High School Anthony Rizzo left his teammates in Arizona during spring training to be somewhere much more important. He quickly boarded a flight to his hometown in Florida to give an emotional speech at the vigil for victims of the mass school shooting that left 17 dead and many more [...]
The Philadelphia Eagles made some big plays on their way to a Super Bowl victory, but in terms of making an impact, none of those actions on the gridiron will come close to what they did for Giovanni Algarin, a 10-year-old who suffers from a rare genetic disorder that affects his bones and muscles. Giovanni has Schwartz Jampel Syndrome, which [...]
For tens of thousands of people around the world, the weekend before Valentine's Day is the best time of the year. Why? Well, Tim Tebow and his foundation hold their annual "Night to Shine," which is a vivacious prom for those with special needs. The former Heisman quarterback and current outfielder for the New York Mets organization is now in [...]
Jared Blank harnessed his strong legs, his robust lungs and his diagnosis of dyslexia to successfully complete the World Marathon Challenge, an epic 7-day trip around the world that gives participants the chance to run seven marathons on seven continents in a week's time. But, dyslexia as a benefit? You bet. "I realized when I was running, dyslexia was what [...]
When mountain guide Barry Cobert first laid eyes on a harrowing section of mountain in Jackson Hole, Wyoming in the 1960s, he proclaimed, "Someday, someone will ski that." However, he never imagined that someday, someone would mountain bike it. Now known as Corbet's Couloir, it's been named "America's scariest ski slope." The entrance to the run is 10 feet wide [...]
If you think running up 86 flights of stairs is pure hell, you're absolutely right. However, every year, thousands apply to run up the 1,576 stairs of the Empire State Building in a lung-searing, leg-dragging race called the Empire State Building Run-Up. I competed last year in the media heat. Upon hitting the stairs that are dispersed on a 65% [...]
It may be National Signing Day, but one of the biggest college acquisitions occurred in late-January when 12-year-old Aiden Taylor signed on with the Rhodes College baseball team. A tween committing already? You bet. Aiden was diagnosed with metastatic medulloblastoma in 2014. He went into remission, but the cancer returned recently, meaning he'll be receiving treatment at nearby St. Jude [...]