Jaguars’ Thomas returns to Lee High to give away groceries, hot meals

Alex Gladden, Montgomery Advertiser
·2 min read

Way before he was a safety for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Daniel Thomas knew that one day he wanted to give back to his community.

That is what Thomas was doing Saturday, giving away groceries to families at his alma mater, Robert E. Lee High School.

“The Lord put it on my heart a couple years ago," Thomas said.

The goal was to give out groceries to 500 families. Families could take four bags of food. At Saturday's event, Thomas along with the nonprofit Convoy of Hope, gave away 1,000 bags of groceries and 1,500 hot meals.

“It’s a way of me not forgetting where I come from," Thomas said of the event.

Thomas hopes to make the giveaway an annual one, he said.

For Christopher Johnson and Bryson McGrew, who both attend Lee and play football there, it was inspiring to see Thomas come back to help the city.

“This event means a lot," McGrew said.

NFL player Daniel Thomas organized an event to give away groceries and hot meals outside his alma mater, Lee High School.
NFL player Daniel Thomas organized an event to give away groceries and hot meals outside his alma mater, Lee High School.
NFL player Daniel Thomas organized an event to give away groceries outside his alma mater, Lee High School.
NFL player Daniel Thomas organized an event to give away groceries outside his alma mater, Lee High School.

Tre’Shun Wilson went to high school at Lee with Thomas. Wilson said giving back to the community like this was always something they wanted to do.

"This was the dream," Wilson said.

Wilson said it is especially important for this side of the community, which does not receive a lot of help.

Thomas' mother, Regina, was also there Saturday while people ate hot dogs, danced to the DJ's set and took photos with Thomas. For Regina, this was also her dream.

“It’s a dream come true because that’s what we’re all about," Regina Thomas said. She later added, "All glory goes to God because he made this possible."

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Convoy of Hope helped make this dream a reality. Former NFL player Vance McDonald got involved with Convoy of Hope when he was first drafted in 2013.

When he left the league, he started working with Convoy of Hope full-time. The nonprofit helps people all over the world, doing outreach events like the one on Sunday and also responding to disasters around the globe.

Thomas said he was grateful for Convoy of Hope’s help organizing the event.

“Just thank God for real," Thomas said.

Alex Gladden is the Montgomery Advertiser's public safety reporter. She can be reached at agladden@gannett.com or on Twitter @gladlyalex.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: NFL’s Daniel Thomas returns to Lee High for grocery giveaway