Vikings Fans Channel Heartbreak By Raising Money For Eagles Charity
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – The Eagles Charitable Foundation will be getting a big boost from an unexpected source: fans of the Minnesota Vikings.
After the Vikings' 38-7 loss to the Eagles on Sunday night, Vikings fan Jessica Brennan Leibrock channeled her heartbreak by encouraging fans to donate to the Philadelphia organization, WCCO reports.
According to WCCO, the idea originated after the NFC Divisional Playoff game between the Vikings and Saints. After the Vikings won, fans donated more than $170,000 to What You Give Will Grow, the charity of Saints punter Thomas Morstead, which helps kids battling cancer.
Morstead decided to donate the money back to Minneapolis Children's Hospital, and he'll be in Minneapolis during Super Bowl week to present the check.
"Let's channel all of this heartbreak and insults and negative energy and turn the ultimate cheek. Let's welcome the Eagles to our house in two weeks by presenting them with a great big check supporting their charitable foundation, a great cause that has served more than a million low-income children in the Philadelphia area," said Jessica through a GoFundMe account. "Let's raise $38,000 ($1,000 for every point that they scored against us ;))"
"I mean it seems to be a coping mechanism for people to be able to do something good," Leibrock tells KYW Newsradio's Andrew Kramer.
She says many Eagles fans were welcoming to Minnesotians, but feels some weren't. And with the Super Bowl in Minnesota, she doesn't want to return the favor per se.
"What we really should do is welcome [the Eagles] to our state in the next two weeks here," Leibrock added.
As of Monday night, more than $5,000 has been raised for the Eagles Charitable Foundation.
The Eagles Charitable Foundation, founded in 1995, serves more than a million children in the region.
"Our efforts continue to include comprehensive vision care by providing free eye exams and glasses to children in our communities who need it most. Additionally, we have expanded our commitment to autism research, investing heavily in groundbreaking studies at some of the region's leading medical institutions," according to the foundation's website.
