The Oakland Raiders headed to Nevada on Wednesday for a ceremony in which they would officially become the Las Vegas Raiders. This was a historic day, but two players first had to make an important stop. Rookie fullback Alec Ingold and tight end Darren Waller headed to Jack Dailey Elementary to hand out healthy lunches to first and second graders.
Raiders Alec Ingold and Darren Waller showed up to serve healthy lunches to First and Second Grade students at Jack Dailey Elementary pic.twitter.com/F5nFK8CGtv
— Kevaney Martin (@KevaneyMartin) January 21, 2020
The two Raiders started the lunch hour handing out the lunches to a long line of kids, but they did not simply provide food and leave. Ingold and Waller also spent the rest of the lunch period mingling with the students and answering any questions they were asked.
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“Just paying it forward as much as possible,” Ingold said about the day spent volunteering. “You just want to be a part of a community growing up, and we’re trying to pay it forward as best we can. It’s great, a great opportunity.”
Waller added his thoughts on the event, saying: “Kids are always thirsting for knowledge. They want to know the truth. They don’t have any real filter at this age, they just want to know honesty, and they just want to see people that are really going to help them, and shape themselves going forward.”
The Raiders have been focused on charitable works in the Las Vegas area since announcing the move from the Bay Area. They released custom Raiders license plates that will help support the charitable arm of the organization. The team also held more than two dozen community events in 2018. Wednesday’s lunch date was just another example.
“These guys [Ingold and Waller] were just so nice, and just spent some time with our kids, and just really got to know them,” school principal Cheryl Trupp said on Wednesday. “I’m appreciative of how that’s going to go moving forward.”
The team was not satisfied with simply sending two players to hand out lunches, however. They also kicked off the Las Vegas era with a massive donation to those in need.
Eddie Paskal of Raiders’ digital also revealed that the Las Vegas Raiders will be donating $500,000 to help clear the meal debt of the youth. This money will be used across the state of Nevada and not just in the Las Vegas area.
Photo Credit: Dustin Bradford/Getty Images
