Chiefs’ Chris Jones starts charity foundation. Here’s why its mission focuses on kids
Back in high school in small-town Houston, Mississippi, Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones had a classmate who was unable to play basketball because he couldn’t afford a pair of shoes. Jones caught wind of it, and so he offered up his own.
Never mind that they were about five sizes too big. Never mind that they were Jones’ only pair.
If you take a trip inside that school, a couple of administrators will still tell you that story. They can’t forget it.
Years later, in a better position of means, Jones is still aiming to create the same effect. Jones announced Tuesday the formation of the Sack Nation Foundation, a charitable organization that’s mission is “to improve the health and well-being of young people in underserved communities.”
You know, like the one from which he came.
“I was actually one of those kids in a poverty community that I wasn’t able to play sports early on in my early age because of financial standpoints,” Jones said in a Zoom call announcing the foundation Tuesday. “... It resonates with me not only in this situation but throughout my life and how I approach the game and how I go about myself.”
When The Star visited Houston in late 2019 to share Jones’ story, his mother, Mary Woodhouse, said she couldn’t afford to pay for her son’s football equipment. Jones got off to a late start on the sport that would blossom into a career paying him handsomely. He didn’t have his own bed even, instead sleeping on his grandmother’s living room couch, his feet hanging off the edge.
Over the past few years, as he’s considered starting a foundation, a “soul-searching” process led him to believe helping kids in similar situations would be its cause.
“I always feel like kids are what keeps the world moving, the youth, the young generation,” Jones said. “A lot of kids don’t get the opportunity because of their situation at home or their parents can’t afford it. For me personally, I just want to be able to help kids, to put them in a position to get noticed or even just be part of a family, be part of a team or be part of something greater than themselves.”
The operation began Tuesday with such a donation. The Sack Nation Foundation is providing the opportunity for 300 kids and their siblings to play flag football through the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. Some of those kids were on the Zoom call Tuesday, and Jones began by taking their questions.
Can you also play basketball?
Does it hurt to tackle?
Can girls play football too?
For the record: One thousand percent; Sometimes, but not if you’re tackling a skinny guy; and of course they can.
The organization’s plans include future events in Kansas City, during training camp in St. Joseph and back in Jones’ Mississippi hometown.
“The sky’s the limit here,” Jones said.
Last offseason, Jones had been franchise-tagged by the Chiefs, his future in Kansas City uncertain.
This year, he spoke of the security — a multi-year contract — and how it prompted the opportunity to fulfill a dream of a different kind.
“Kansas City embraced me like family. They welcomed me with open arms,” Jones said. “They took a chance on me, man. This city took a chance on me. I’m just trying to make the best of it. It’s always been my goal to give back.”
This story was originally published February 23, 2021 at 11:38 AM.