Travis Kelce is continuing his good work off the football field just as well as he is on it as the NFL star made an incredible donation to children in need this week. The 34-year-old, who scored two touchdowns in front of girlfriend Taylor Swift at the weekend, has donated thousands of meals to children in the Kansas City area in partnership with Kodiak.
The Kansas City Chiefs tight end has partnered with the breakfast foods brand just three days before the AFC Championship game to provide hot breakfasts for hundreds of families. Through Operation Breakthrough, an afterschool program for under-resourced youth, the kind-hearted NFL star has donated 25,000 hot meals to children in Kansas City. ‘Joining forces with my friends over at Kodiak to fuel the Operation Breakthrough families is a total privilege. Alongside Kodiak, a brand I love, we will be making a meaningful difference in the day-to-day life of hundreds of Kansas City kids, and I couldn’t be more excited to make this happen,’ Kelce said.
Travis Kelce is continuing his good work off the football field just as well as he is on it
Both Kelce and Kodiak want to work together to provide children with hearty breakfasts packed with protein and whole grains to help them engage in an active lifestyle. ‘We are thrilled to work with Travis and an organization that is near and dear to his heart,’ said Val Oswalt, CEO of Kodiak. ‘By providing nutritious breakfasts we are giving kids what they need to be set up for success, and ultimately pave the way for healthier futures.’
It isn’t the first time Kelce has teamed up with Operation Breakthrough to benefit the Kansas City community. During the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, he donated all the food and supplies Breakthrough would need for 15 weeks ‘to keep it business as usual for the kids.’Â Later that year, he purchased land to build a STEM facility for high school children at Operation Breakthrough.
Kelce’s Eighty-Seven & Running Foundation formed a partnership with the organization years ago, launching the Ignition Lab in August 2020. It houses a digital media lab, automotive and engineering lab and an on-site food truck run by culinary arts students. ‘As a kid I was mindful of how life looked different for everyone, but as a man I am profoundly aware of the difference in opportunity, exposure, and privilege I grew up with compared to others,’ Kelce said in a statement at the time.
The 25,000 hot breakfasts will benefit children through Operation Breakthrough
‘Where you live, the situation you were born into or the color of your skin should have no impact on the dreams you can dream. And it’s a beautiful thing when a kid’s dream comes true.’Â In October last year, a clip of the two-time Super Bowl champion dancing at a charity fundraising event for Operation Breakthrough went viral.
The Chiefs tight end took time out of his busy schedule to attend the event alongside Current star Lo’eau LaBonta and volunteers from the charity. And in a clip which has gone viral online, he even tried to execute LaBonta’s famous twerk while dancing to Aretha Franklin’s ‘Respect’. LaBonta set the internet ablaze last year by pretending to limp away after scoring a penalty and then pulling out a twerk, a celebration which instantly became iconic.
Kelce did his best to emulate the move at the fundraising event, before dragging in two women who were watching from the side to get involved while clapping and waving his arms in the air. His mom, Donna, also joined her son’s charitable works, selling cookies at a Chiefs game in December with all proceeds going to the non-profit organization.
In 2022, Kelce joined several other athletes, including Joe Burrow, Sloane Stephens and CC Sabathia, in investing in Kodiak. Kodiak has become a popular brand for its range of better-for-you protein-powered breakfast staples. At the time, Kelce said: ‘I’ve been a fan of Kodiak products for a long time and excited to officially collaborate with the brand. Their cakes are high-protein, whole grain, and taste great. I’m looking forward to working with the Kodiak team and collectively bring the brand to even more consumers.’
Meanwhile, Kelce will look to continue his good work on the field as well this week as the Chiefs head to Baltimore to face the Ravens on Sunday. Kansas City will play in its sixth-straight AFC Championship game, looking to dust of the No. 1 seeded Ravens for a spot in Super Bowl LVIII.
