Thank You, Brady

Thanksgiving is typically a time for three things: Family, friends and football. Every Thanksgiving in the past, I can assure you that all three of the aforementioned were fully enjoyed, as fewer things can break up a 40-hour work week better than a shit-ton of food sandwiched between two football games. Unfortunately, this past Thanksgiving was not the greatest, as I had found out that the younger sister of one of my very good friends had been killed that morning in an automobile accident en route to a family gathering. I am very close with the family, and for their privacy I will not discuss names or anything of the like, but the remainder of the weekend was somber at best as we all lost a friend - but they obviously lost much, much more.

One thing that can be said about my friend’s sister is that despite the weather, the record or the outlook of the season, she was one of the bigger fans of the Cleveland Browns that I knew. A bigger fan than most of my male friends, my buddy had actually gotten her to eat a dog bone when she was little by telling her that she couldn’t be a fan without the “rite of passage.” Never saying an unkind word about anyone – although I can remember a few choice thoughts on Charlie Frye, but in hindsight they may have been warranted – she was truly one of a kind.

This past weekend, I received a call from my friend whom I hadn’t talked to in a while, as I wanted things to settle down for he and his family. The conversation was short, but given all of the talks this season regarding Brady Quinn, his antics, and his lack of playing time, I felt that it needed to be shared with the rest of you.

My friend’s sister lived in Dublin, OH – the same town from which Quinn grew up, and his family still resides. While I won’t get into the transgression of how all of this took place, let’s just say that Quinn should be considered a class act on all levels.

Just days ago, my friend was presented with a box. And inside of this box was Brady Quinn’s game-worn jersey from the second week of the season. On it were words that would mean very little to others, but mean very, very much to my friend and his family.

"To the [Redacted] Family, in memory of [Redacted]. – Brady Quinn"

Quinn had caught wind of the story, and hand-delivered this jersey himself. He delivered something that obviously means a lot to him, but handed it over to someone that he had never met in his entire life with the assurance that it would be delivered to my friend and his family.

I hope that I can get a picture of the gift, so that it can be posted in the near future – but for now, you just have to take my word for it.

While things like this tend to be a drop in the bucket of emotion that has transpired over the past couple of weeks, my buddy can rest assured that his kid sister is looking down on this moment as something that happens very rarely, but happened because of what she meant to a lot of people – and this happiness can now be passed on to her family.

Thank you, Brady.