Following the Buffalo Bills’ defeat of the Baltimore Ravens in the Divisional Round of the NFL Playoffs, Bills Mafia decided to turn a negative into a positive in response to Lamar Jackson’s injury in Bills Stadium. To show their support and wish him well, many fans began donating in Jackson’s honor to his favorite non-profit charity—the Louisville, KY chapter of Blessings in a Backpack.
The charity plays a vital role working to ensure children who receive meals through federal programs during the week don’t go hungry. With the COVID-19 pandemic causing widespread food shortages and vastly changing the way many children attend school, the organization plays an especially crucial role in feeding those who may otherwise go without right now on weekends on weekends.
Of course, this isn’t the first time Bills Mafia has donated to a charitable organization on behalf of another team. You may recall when, in January 2018, Bills fans raised more than $415,000 in honor of then-Cincinnati Bengals QB Andy Dalton’s foundation, the Andy and JJ Dalton Foundation. This, or course, was in response to Dalton’s touchdown pass to Tyler Boyd that knocked the Baltimore Ravens out of the playoffs and the Buffalo Bills into them for the first time in 17 seasons. In response, the Daltons showed their appreciation for Bills Mafia’s support by making a donation on behalf of their charity to the pediatric department of the Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo.
Earlier this season, Bills fans also donated to the John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital in memory of Josh Allen’s grandmother, Patricia Allen, who passed away the night before Allen faced the Seattle Seahawks. Through the outpouring of support by Bills Mafia, including a $217,000 donation by Sue McCollom, more than $1 million dollars was raised for Oishei Children’s Hospital, creating the ‘Patricia Allen Fund” to provide continued support for Hospital patients.
On Monday, Bills Mafia challenged the Chiefs Kingdom to donate in an effort to surpass $500,000 before their teams square off next Sunday. As of this writing, donations totaled almost $378,000, thanks in large part to Bills Mafia, but also from fans of many other NFL teams as well as others. For all that the fanbase has done, and will certainly continue to do, thank you for your generosity. If you’d like to make a donation to Blessings in a Backpack, you can do so by clicking here.