Cardinals welcoming local groups with special invitations to training camp
Monday was a special day at Arizona Cardinals training camp for some members of Gigi's Playhouse, a nonprofit organization that works with and supports young people with Down syndrome and their families.
The group got to meet with, take photos with and get autographs from a group of Cardinals players at the end of Monday's practice. The Gigi's Playhouse contingent had a small seating section near the kids' play zone at State Farm Stadium.
Each day during camp, the Cardinals invite a group or charity to attend practice and receive additional access to players and team representatives. The Cardinals have long worked with Gigi's Playhouse, which has a facility in Scottsdale
The program doesn't charge for services, which include speech therapy and tutoring, with the help of grants.
"Children with Down syndrome are often excluded. And so this gives them an opportunity to do the same thing their peers do, and they'll go back to school this week telling them all they got to meet Cardinals players and get autographs. So it's just a really great opportunity for our families," Gigi's Playhouse executive director Robin Lea-Amos said, watching the Cardinals from a a corner section of the stadium.
Former Cardinals defensive lineman J.J. Watt hosted members of the group at a game last season and gave them pregame sideline access. Monday was their first time attending training camp.
The players who took part in interacting with the kids returned to the Cardinals locker room with smiles on their faces. Rookie Kei'Trel Clark said for some, it was their first time in an NFL stadium.
"It's something that I'd do even when I'm back at home," Clark said. "I'm always trying to give back any type of way that I can. So I was appreciative of that moment to be able to share with them."
Second-year Cardinal Jesse Luketa has been regularly active in Cardinals' community work since he joined the team.
"It really matters. It's humbling, it goes a long way," Luketa said. "You know, at the end of the day, you never know who you're gonna meet. You never know whose day you may change."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: What Arizona Cardinals players were feeling good about Monday after practice
