37 Forever Foundation Speech: Saturday Night September 8, 2001

[AJKCFAN]

Eighteen years. Certainly, more than enough time to forget
someone. However, there are some people in life that time will not allow us to forget because they were so special. Every person in this room can easily think of such a person. It might be their spouse, a family member or a very close friend.

On rare occasions, and it doesn’t happen often, someone we have never met personally can have that same effect on us.

That someone is why you are here tonight. Joe Delaney was such a person. By knowing who he was and what he did, he became impossible to forget.

This is why the 37 Forever Foundation has been created.

Joe Delaney was the epitome of success. Married to his childhood
sweetheart, Carolyn, they raised three beautiful children together (Tamika, rystal, and Joanna). He attained success as a person, a husband, and a father, despite a very humble background, and that is what made him who he was.
he was.

On the professional level, Joe brought hope to the Chiefs franchise,leading the team to its most successful season in 10 years and along the way,winning the AFC Rookie of the Year, Chiefs Team MVP Honors, and
a Pro Bowl berth; all as a rookie.

Off the field, Joe gave himself to others, gave back to his community
in Haughton, Louisiana, and took pride in being the best person he could
be. However, on June 29, 1983, at the young age of 24, his life was cut
short as he tragically drowned while trying to save the lives of three young
boys; one of which he did save. Carolyn has often remarked that Joe
would still have tried to save those kids, even if he had known he’d lose his
life in the process. That’s just the type of person Joe was.

There’s no way to dispute this. Joe jumped into that lake, despite
knowing of his own inability to swim. Very much like the way he would
seek out would-be tacklers and run straight into them, dragging his legs
for every extra yard, Joe Delaney showed the same fearless attitude on
June 29, 1983.

He lost his life that day but left a small spark that has ignited a
flame which is burning bright in this room tonight. We, at the 37 Forever
Foundation, will do our very best to keep this fire going and to help
advance Joe’s spirit of heroism.

Throughout this grassroots effort, I came across this quote
attributed to Joe Delaney that sums up what he was all about;

“Always look to help others in need and be ready to do so when
called upon”.

This is how the 37 Forever Foundation will look to honor Joe
Delaney, here in Kansas City.

We will create a Joe Delaney Scholarship Award, so that students in
the Kansas City area who have faced adversity in life can have an
opportunity to succeed in life.

We will also create a Joe Delaney Community Award, to recognize
those citizens in the Kansas City area who have demonstrated remarkable
heroism in spite of a difficult situation or event they have faced.

Finally, we have reached out to the Red Cross and have started a
partnership which will see children throughout the Kansas City area
benefit from learning how to swim, as well as learning proper water safety.
We at the Foundation want to make sure history doesn’t tragically repeat itself.

We look forward to working very closely with the Kansas City Chiefs
organization for years to come. Our cooperation and teamwork will
further Joe Delaney’s legacy in Kansas City, and, hopefully, the nation.

I would like to give special thanks to the media outlets here in
Kansas City, especially WHB radio, the Kansas City Star and FOX 4, who
have helped immeasurably in raising the level of public consciousness
towards our cause. Special thanks as well to Mark Kram from the
Philadelphia Daily News who has done so much in advancing the
Foundation.

Also, many thanks to the Delaney family for their support and
blessing, as well as the Chiefs Ambassadors, Joe’s former teammates,
Marv Levy, and Joe’s alma mater Northwestern State University in
Louisiana, for their great support.

Above all else, we would not be here tonight if not for all of the
dedicated members the 37 Forever Foundation has; both in Kansas City
and nationwide. If I could detail all the reasons why, we’d be here all
night, but I would like to briefly thank several members: Thanks to Tom
Cash for co-founding this wonderful cause with me. Incredible thanks to
Alan Clubine, who orchestrated this entire weekend and made this into a
success. To Joe Whiteash for his brilliance in organizing the
Foundation’s website. To Scott Lent for adding to the website’s excellence,
setting up merchandise to be sold at Cafe Press, as well as his valuable
input. To Phil Kloster, huge thanks for always going above and beyond to
help the Foundation succeed. To Roy Caswell, for his tremendous work
in organizing the wonderful golf outing we had this morning. To Michael
Bayha, whose unbridled enthusiasm and amazing creativity has helped
produce many terrific ideas for the Foundation. To Pam Smith and Steve
Muraco, for the expertise you both brought to the Foundation’s
infrastructure and for the extra help tonight. To Mark Dye, whose tireless
work led to the official Foundation logo you see today, as well as time
spent publishing material for this weekend. To Todd Bourg and Drew
Gully, for taking great pride and dedication in enhancing the success of
the Foundation; and to Todd extra special thanks for making it up from
Houston amidst those mini-tornadoes we had last night. And to Kyle
Terrill and Bill Krumel, for permitting early exposure for the Foundation
to be publicized through their respective Chiefs websites. Also, thanks to
Alan, Michael, Scott, Kathy Thomas, and Brian Handke for helping make
tonight’s Fundraiser so successful.

But the greatest thanks of all belongs to Joe Delaney himself, for
being the inspiration for the creation of this Foundation. The time has
come for 37 to be remembered forever. We will NOT let you down.

Thank you very much for being on hand tonight to welcome the 37
Forever Foundation.