The Browns are pitching in to help lift up those affected by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
The team announced Friday they will match donations made by its players and those raised during Sunday's season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
After Harvey took aim at southeastern Texas two weeks ago, defensive end and Houston native Emmanuel Ogbah and his teammates collected more than $24,000 that will go toward Team Rubicon, which provides relief to those affected by natural disasters by paring the skills of military veterans with first responders, medical professionals, and technology solutions. The club matched that donation to bring the total to more than $48,000.
Irma, a Category 4 storm, is expected to make landfall in South Florida this weekend.
In addition, the Browns will make a matching donation to the American Red Cross based on the charitable portion of Sunday's Browns Give Back 50/50 Raffle, which raises money for the team's longstanding partner Shoes and Clothes for Kids.
For example, if the raffle reaches $50,000, the winning fan will receive $25,000 and Shoes and Clothes for Kids (SC4K) will receive $25,000. The Browns will then make an independent matching donation of $25,000 to the American Red Cross toward hurricane relief efforts.
SC4K is the only non-profit organization in Greater Cleveland providing new shoes and clothes through the year to thousands of children at no charge. The program be the non-profit recipient of all 50/50 Raffle fundraising during the 2017 season.
Raffle tickets are available at kiosks throughout FirstEnergy Stadium during the game, while volunteers will be onsite at Dawg Pound Drive and select tailgate lots prior to kickoff. Browns fans inside the stadium will also be able to acquire 50/50 Raffle tickets directly through the Browns Mobile App, a new feature added in 2016.
During the past three years, the Browns Give Back 50/50 Raffle raised more than $461,000 for the Cleveland Browns Foundation and local charities. Shoes and Clothes 4 Kids (SC4K), which was one of the 2016 beneficiaries of the 50/50 Raffle, will receive all funds raised in the 2017 season to support their mission and for purchasing and distributing new school clothing, shoes and school supplies to more than 11,000 local kids in poverty.
As part of Browns Give Back's commitment to education, the Cleveland Browns Foundation provides financial grants and other resources to local, educational non-profits to ensure youth in Northeast Ohio receive the education and development they need as a foundation for independence and success.
For more information, visit ClevelandBrowns.com/foundation.
About the Cleveland Browns and Browns Give Back:
The Browns Give Back to Northeast Ohio with a commitment to education and youth football while engaging the community through the team's signature First and Ten volunteer movement. For more information, visit www.clevelandbrowns.com/brownsgiveback.
Education – The Cleveland Browns are dedicated to a solution-based, holistic approach to ensure Northeast Ohio youth receive the education and development they need as a foundation for independence and success. The team also engages local schools and promotes education in various capacities throughout the year to help identify opportunities, remove barriers and provide support to students to empower them to be successful.
Youth Football – The Cleveland Browns are committed to assisting the development, safety and growth of youth and high school football throughout Northeast Ohio with year-round programming for players, coaches, officials and parents. Through camps, clinics and other initiatives, the Browns' goal is to promote healthy, social, emotional, intellectual and physical development of youth by enhancing opportunities for youth football participation and education.
First and Ten – Launched in June 2014, the Cleveland Browns First and Ten campaign is the team's community program, established to inspire fans to #give10and help their communities by volunteering for 10 hours each year. Through First and Ten, the Browns are the only NFL club to promote a long-term volunteering program that unifies the team and its entire fan base, with the goal of impacting every individual's city across the globe, as well as the franchise's local community. To date, nearly 1.5 million hours of volunteering have been pledged through First and Ten. All Browns fans are encouraged to join the volunteering effort by signing the First and Ten pledge on the team's website and by sharing their stories with #give10.
About Shoes and Clothes for Kids:
Shoes and Clothes for Kids is a long-standing partner of Browns Give Back. Shoes and Clothes for Kids is the only non-profit organization in Greater Cleveland providing new shoes and clothes through the year to thousands of children at no charge. Shoes and Clothes for Kids, the Cleveland Metropolitan School District (CMSD) and Browns Give Back also work together to provide uniforms, casual clothing, shoes and school supplies to Cleveland scholars through the "Special Teams Package" program. This initiative is aligned with CMSD's "Get 2 School, You Can Make It!" attendance campaign, another signature program of Browns Give Back. The program addresses a basic need for thousands of CMSD students facing poverty in an effort to remove clothing as a barrier to school attendance.
